Department for Transport

Railways: North Cornwall

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has plans to reopen train lines in North Cornwall.

Andrew Jones: The Department looks to local authorities to identify local transport needs. In November 2017, the Secretary of State said in A Strategic Vision for Rail that the challenge to our partners was to work with Government and the industry to develop compelling proposals for the next generation of rail schemes, identifying the places where rail is the right answer for local transport needs. All schemes would need to demonstrate a strong business case where they are seeking any available Government funding.

Harrow and Wealdstone Station: Parking

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Network Rail on increasing the size of the car park at Harrow and Wealdstone station; and will he make a statement.

Andrew Jones: Harrow and Wealdstone station is managed by Transport for London so any discussions around the size of the car park would be for TfL to consider. Ministers have not held discussions on this matter.

Railways: Harrow

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what requirements he has put on Network Rail to liaise with Harrow Council to increase access underneath the railway line from the new housing development at the former Kodak site to the Wealdstone shopping district in the London Borough of Harrow.

Andrew Jones: Local authorities and developers are expected to consult relevant stakeholders, including Network Rail, on development proposals in their area. We would expect Network Rail to engage constructively with any such discussions.

Harrow and Wealdstone Station

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with train operators to increase the number of trains that stop at Harrow and Wealdstone station; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: From May 19th this year, London Northwestern passengers at Harrow and Wealdstone will benefit from three additional trains to London, which start at Watford, in the morning peaks and two additional returning services from London in the evening peak.

Gatwick Airport: Railways

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Network Rail on re-opening the Harrow and Wealdstone to Gatwick service; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: There have been no discussions with Network Rail on this issue. There are frequent services between Harrow & Wealdstone station and London Gatwick Airport requiring one or two changes.

East Midlands Rail Franchise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May 2019 to Question 247080, for what reason he is unable to state whether or not Arriva submitted a compliant bid for the East Midlands Trains franchise; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: I refer the Honourable member to the answer given on 3 May Arriva’s bid is a matter for them.

South Eastern Rail Franchise: Compensation

Joseph Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will immediately implement Delay Repay 15 compensation on the South Eastern franchise.

Andrew Jones: Delay Repay from 15 minutes (DR15) will be implemented when the new SouthEastern franchise starts.

East Midlands Rail Franchise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Abellio bid for the East Midlands Trains franchise was fully compliant with the terms set out by the Department for the evaluation of bids.

Andrew Jones: I refer the Honourable member to the answer given on 8 May [250032] in regards to East Midlands Trains franchise.

Taxis: Guide Dogs

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of legislating to make it illegal for taxis and private hire vehicles to turn away guide dogs.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Sections 168 and 170 of the Equality Act 2010 already require drivers of taxis and PHVs to accept passengers accompanied by assistance dogs without charging them extra. The Government expects drivers to comply with the law and encourages local licensing authorities to take robust action against those unwilling to do so. Drivers convicted of a relevant offence face fines of up to £1000.

Railways: Kent

Tom Tugendhat: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that a direct train service operates from West Malling and Borough Green to London Bridge from December 2019.

Andrew Jones: We are working with the current operator of Thameslink, Govia Thameslink Railway, and with the industry to realise the full benefits of the Thameslink Programme as part of the new timetable process. We have been absolutely clear that our main priority is delivering the reliable services that passengers expect.

Ebbsfleet Station

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of passenger numbers using Ebbsfleet station.

Andrew Jones: The Office of Rail and Road publishes annual Estimates of Station Usage, which provides the total number of entries & exits and interchanges for each station on Great Britain’s national rail network. The latest publication for 2017-18 shows that there were estimated to be 1,961,528 entries & exits and 57,476 interchanges at Ebbsfleet International. This does not include passengers using the Eurostar services. The full publication including more historic data can be found at:https://orr.gov.uk/statistics/published-stats/station-usage-estimates

Ebbsfleet Station

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of future passenger numbers on Southeastern services to and from Ebbsfleet station.

Andrew Jones: The Office of Rail and Road provides estimates of current passenger numbers including Ebbsfleet and these are available from the ORR website. The Department for Transport publishes guidance on forecasting demand growth in the future for stations on the network. This guidance is called ‘WebTAG’ and can be found on the Department’s website.

Flexible Working

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the contribution of home and flexible working to reducing congestion on (a) rail and (b) road networks.

Andrew Jones: The Department considers all aspects that may affect the rail and road network when assessing the changes of demand for the future. The Department updated its rail forecasting guidance in 2016 to take into account different trip rates for people in different age groups and occupations. This was based on analysis of the National Travel Survey. The Department continues to review its forecasts, including analysing the impact of flexible working. The Departments’ guidance feeds into business cases for rail investments and franchise analysis. The guidance is called ‘WebTAG’ and is published on the Department’s websiteThe ‘Latest Evidence on Factors Impacting Road Traffic Growth’ review published by the Department in May 2018 included reviews of tele-commuting and the impact of e-commerce and social media on travel. The findings from this research informed the development of the Draft ‘Road Investment Strategy 2’.

Great Western Rail Franchise

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the current contract for the Great Western franchise includes a requirement for a trolley-only catering service on trains.

Andrew Jones: The current Great Western franchise agreement is published on the Department’s website. The franchise agreement requires Great Western Railway to offer a trolley-based catering service for both standard and first class on some services operated by Intercity Express Trains, in line with Great Western Railway’s offer to the Department at the time the franchise agreement was negotiated.

Great Western Rail Franchise

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the current contract for the Great Western franchise allows for the catering provision to be provided via a buffet café-bar counter service on trains.

Andrew Jones: The Great Western franchise agreement does not prevent on-board catering provision by Great Western Railway including a buffet or café-bar counter service.

Great Western Railway Line: Catering

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department was consulted on the decision to remove the buffet café-bar service from all Great Western Intercity Express trains.

Andrew Jones: The specification of the trains was developed by the Department to deliver the outcomes it wanted to achieve with the new fleet, including more passenger seats, more leg room, increased capacity, reduced journey time, increased reliability and greater passenger comfort. This specification included an extensive, consultation process including with the train operator that was recognised by the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society and awarded the User Centred Product Design Award. The process involved numerous passenger groups representing commuters, cyclists, wheel chair users and visually impaired travellers.

Great Western Railway Line: Catering

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment has been made of the level of customer demand for a trolley-only catering service on Great Western Intercity Express trains.

Andrew Jones: The Department published the response to its consultation on the future of the Great Western franchise on 28 August 2018: (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/736146/great-western-rail-franchise-stakeholder-briefing-document.pdf). This shows ten areas of response from consultees about catering, including comments about both trolley services and buffet cars.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which ecologists HS2 Ltd has employed to monitor tree and hedge netting along the route of High Speed Two; on what dates and at which locations nets were put in place; on what days and during which hours netted sites have been patrolled and checked by ecologists; and what wildlife has been caught in the nets and subsequently (a) perished or (b) been released.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Ltd has not directly employed ecologists to install, monitor or remove bird netting; HS2 Ltd contractors, Fusion JV, have employed the services of a sub-contractor for this work. There have been deployments of bird netting in two areas on Phase One of HS2. In both areas no birds or other wildlife were trapped, injured or killed by the use of netting. Netting was used by Western Power Distribution (WPD) near Silverstone in relation to utility works. The netting was installed on 4th and 5th February 2019 and was removed on 2nd April. WPD employed a suitably experienced ecologist for guidance to erect the netting and to carry out inspections of the netting. Inspections of the netted area were carried out on 12th, 14th, 20th, 22nd and 27th Feb and 1st, 5th, 7th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 20th, 21st, 26th and 29th March 2019. The inspections were carried out at differing times of the day and typically lasted 2 hours. Secondly, netting was used by Fusion and National Grid near Quainton in relation to utility works. Hedge netting was installed on 6th March; the worksite was handed over from Fusion to National Grid on 4th April and National Grid confirmed they removed the netting on 15th April. Fusion employed a suitably experienced ecologist for guidance to erect and inspect the netting and National Grid employed a suitably experienced ecologist for monitoring and removal of the netting. Inspections of the netting were undertaken on the 7th, 15th, 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, March and the 2nd and 4th April, and then every couple of days until the netting was removed on 15th April.

Large Goods Vehicles: Accidents

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of HGV lorry accidents caused by improperly secured cargo moving within a vehicle.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport holds information on whether an ‘overloaded or poorly loaded vehicle or trailer’ is recorded as a contributory factor in reported personal injury road accidents. In 2017, there were 33 HGVs (1%) involved in accidents in Great Britain with a contributory factor of ‘overloaded or poorly loaded vehicle or trailer’ recorded by the police attending the scene. The Department does not hold specific data on whether cargo was moving within the vehicle.

Large Goods Vehicles: Safety

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that health and safety checks are carried out to ensure that all HGV lorries carry cargo that is properly secured.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) checks the security of loads on heavy goods vehicles (HGV) during roadside encounters as part of its enforcement duties, although the responsibility for making sure the load a HGV is carrying is secure before driving rests with the driver and operator. If the DVSA finds a HGV’s load is unsafe during a roadside encounter, the DVSA (or the police) can take enforcement action. This can result in either penalty points, legal proceedings being issued or a report being sent to the Traffic Commissioner (TC). After consideration of a report from the DVSA, the TC may take regulatory action for failure to comply with the undertaking of an operator’s licence. Disciplinary action can include suspension, curtailment or revocation of an operator licence. Drivers must conduct a daily walk round of their vehicle before starting a journey. They must also check any load is secure. These requirements are covered within the DVSA’s ‘Guide to maintaining roadworthiness’ which provides useful diagrams to fully explain drivers’ responsibilities and what should be checked during an effective walk round check.

Large Goods Vehicles: Safety

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has plans to update the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's health and safety guidance on load securing for HGV lorries.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) keeps its health and safety guidance on load securing for heavy goods vehicles (HGV) under continuing review. The DVSA updates its guidance when necessary to reflect changes and developments within the transport industry, to help ensure HGV drivers are fully aware of their responsibilities.

Large Goods Vehicles: Safety

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that cargo transported from abroad adheres to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's health and safety guidance when it is transported in Britain.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has facilities to check the security of loads carried on foreign heavy goods vehicles (HGV) entering this country at all its ports. The agency also has strategically placed check sites around the country for checking the safety of vehicles, including the security of their loads, regardless of whether they are foreign or based in Great Britain. The responsibility for making sure the load a HGV is carrying is secure before driving rests with the driver and operator.

Large Goods Vehicles: Safety

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that non-UK based hauliers comply with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's health and safety guidance on load securing for HGV lorries when transporting cargo in Britain.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has facilities to check the security of loads carried on foreign heavy goods vehicles (HGV) entering this country at all its ports. The agency also has strategically placed check sites around the country for checking the safety of vehicles, including the security of their loads, regardless of whether they are foreign or based in Great Britain. The responsibility for making sure the load a HGV is carrying is secure before driving rests with the driver and operator. The DVSA’s ‘Guide to maintaining roadworthiness’ is aimed at all haulage operators using British roads, not just those based in Britain. It reflects advice contained in the ‘European Best Practice Guidelines on Cargo Securing for Road Transport’. If the DVSA finds a load on a HGV of a non-UK based haulier to be unsafe, the DVSA (or the police) can take enforcement action. This could result in the issue of a prohibition notice to prevent the vehicle from moving until the load is made safe and/or a fixed penalty fine.

Airports: National Policy Statements

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the (a) legal (b) other costs to the public purse of the judicial review of the Airports National Policy Statement.

Jesse Norman: The external costs to date to the Department of defending the judicial review claims are £1,608,642 for legal costs and £95,152 for other costs. Following the judgments in favour of the Secretary of State, the Department will seek to recover up to £625,000 in costs from the unsuccessful claimants.

Ministry of Defence

China: Telecommunications

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether army personnel have been issued with (a) mobile handsets and (b) other devices (i) manufactured by Huawei and (ii) manufactured by Huawei but provided by and badged with the names of other companies; and what her Department's policy is towards the use of telecommunications equipment manufactured by Chinese companies.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes the security of its Information and Communications Technology (ICT) systems and services very seriously. However, for security reasons, the MOD does not comment publicly on the specifics of its ICT systems and services.

Defence: Contracts

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which defence contracts were granted exemption from the single source regulation regime in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17 and (c) 2017-18; and what was the value of each of those contracts.

Stuart Andrew: All exemptions from the Single Source Contract Regulations have to be personally authorised by the Secretary of State, who only does so under exceptional circumstances. Between April 2015 and March 2018, fewer than 10 contracts were exempted, valued at less than 1% of the 19.4 billion worth of single source defence contracts brought under the regime during that period. These were exempted from the regulations on a variety of grounds, including when value for money assurance could be achieved through, for example, purchasing commercially priced items.Details of individual contracts and the numbers exempted in each year have not been provided because disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the commercial interests of the companies involved or the Ministry of Defence.

NATO: Joint Exercises

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which Minister in her Department authorised UK participation in Exercise Joint Warrior; and what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of participation in that exercise.

Mark Lancaster: Joint Warrior is a longstanding exercise, directly supporting force capability and generation, and is a core Defence activity. As such, individual exercises do not require Ministerial approval and are not separately costed.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 250787, what information his Department holds on whether BAE Systems supervised the (a) fusing of bombs and (b) final preparations of munitions for operational sorties in Yemen.

Mark Lancaster: The Department does not hold the information and I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 18 March 2019 to Question 232090.



Saudi Arabia: Military Aid
(Word Document, 22.31 KB)

War Graves: Falkland Islands

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment her Department has made of the accuracy of media reports on 7 May 2019 that war graves on the Falkland Island are being disrespected; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure the protection of those graves.

Mark Lancaster: Anti-social behaviour of this nature is clearly reprehensible; action to address it would be a matter for the Royal Falkland Islands Police.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Living Wage and Minimum Wage: Non-payment

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2019 to Question 248059, when the review of the NMW Naming Scheme began; and whether it his policy to suspend naming non-compliant employers until that review has concluded.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 13 May 2019



As announced in the Government response of December 2018, the review of the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage (NMW) Naming Scheme commenced in response to recommendations made by the Director of Labour Market Enforcement in his 2018/2019 Labour Market Enforcement Strategy. No further naming of employers for NMW breaches will take place until the review has been completed.

Cars: Hire Services

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a mandatory membership group for car hire companies to (a) better protect consumers and (b) ensure adequate standards in the industry.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government has not made any assessment of introducing a mandatory membership group for car hire companies. There is strong consumer protection legislation in place that protects consumers when dealing with traders, including car hire companies, namely the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. In addition, the Competition and Markets Authority has considered and carried out enforcement action against certain car hire companies for breaches of consumer protection legislation and has produced guidance for businesses and consumers. Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-leads-europe-wide-action-on-car-hire. For further information on their rights, consumers should contact the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06 (www.citizensadvice.org.uk/). The helpline offers free advice to consumers on their rights and how to take their complaint forward. The helpline will also refer on complaints to the relevant authority for further enforcement action where appropriate.

Coal Fired Power Stations

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the trends in the level of coal-generating electricity supplied to the national grid.

Kelly Tolhurst: The ‘Updated Energy and Emissions Projections 2018[1] includes data on previous levels and future projections of coal-generated electricity. There has been a rapid decline in the use of coal in power generation in recent years, from 40% in 2012 to 7% in 2017. We have seen regular periods of zero coal generation since summer 2016. Between 1 May and 8 May 2019, Great Britain went a week without coal-fired electricity generation for the first time since the Industrial Revolution. The Government has committed to phase out all unabated coal-fired electricity generation by 2025. [1]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2018

Energy: Meters

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much the Government has spent on TV and radio advertising to promote smart meters.

Kelly Tolhurst: Smart Energy GB is responsible for the national consumer awareness campaign for smart meters in Great Britain. Smart Energy GB is an independent, not for profit organisation funded by energy suppliers. Details of Smart Energy GB’s budget can be found at: https://www.smartenergygb.org/en/about-us/essential-documents.

Energy: Meters

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the extent to which the Data Communications Company will install upgraded communication software to SMETS1 smart meters by 2020.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Data Communications Company (DCC) and energy suppliers have obligations to upgrade their systems and operate SMETS1 smart meters within the DCC’s national communications network by the end of 2020.

Energy: Meters

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of conducting a new cost-benefit analysis of the smart meter roll-out over the last five years.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government is committed to publishing a new Cost Benefit Analysis for the Smart Meter Implementation Programme this year.

Flexible Working

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support increased (a) home and flexible working and (b) provision of co-working spaces.

Kelly Tolhurst: Government is actively supporting good quality flexible working, of which home working can be part, and the provision of co-working spaces.We have set up, with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the Flexible Working Taskforce to promote wider understanding and implementation of inclusive flexible work and working practices. In January this year the Taskforce published a business case, supporting guidance and its members committed to support and promote the “Happy to Talk Flexible Working” campaign.We have committed to consult on a new duty on employers to consider when a job can be done flexibly, and make that clear when advertising.We have also committed to review the statutory right to request flexible working in 2020 and have commissioned some of the surveys to gather data for that work.Through the Local Enterprise Partnership we promote economic growth and jobs in local areas. In order to deliver this objective, some LEPs have supported the creation of co-working spaces alongside advice and other support for business start-ups. This is being done in a number of ways, including through Growth Hubs and innovation centres.

Flexible Working

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the contribution to the economy of home and flexible working.

Kelly Tolhurst: We carried out an impact assessment in 2014 on the extension of the statutory right to request flexible working, estimating a total benefit (net present value) of £474.9 million. This figure incorporates monetised benefits relating to the extension of the right to request to all employees with 26 weeks continuous service and therefore does not take into account the flexible working among parents and carers that was already taking place prior to the extension. We are currently reviewing the 2014 extension of the right to request Flexible working to all eligible employees. The review will test the economic assumptions underpinning the cost-benefit analysis in the original impact assessment.

Solar Power: Housing

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of rooftop solar panels deployed on domestic homes since the closure of the Feed-In Tariff scheme.

Kelly Tolhurst: The number of domestic solar installations during April 2019 will be published by BEIS on Thursday 30 May using information from the MCS (Microgeneration Certification Scheme) installation database. These are provisional numbers which are subject to revision in future publications. Solar photovoltaic deployment statistics is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solar-photovoltaics-deployment.

Solar Power

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has been monitoring the deployment of new (a) rooftop solar power since 1 April 2019, (b) ground mounted solar power less than or equal to 5MW since 1 April 2016 and (c) ground mounted solar power less than 5MW since 1 April 2015.

Kelly Tolhurst: Deployment of installations is monitored (a) for rooftop solar since 1 April 2019, through the MCS installation database (MID), (b) for ground mounted solar power less than or equal to 5MW since 1 April 2016, through the central FIT register (CFR), and (c) for ground mounted solar power less than 5MW since 1 April 2015, through the CFR and a register of installations accredited through the renewables obligation (RO).

Mineworkers' Pension Scheme

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much funding the Government contributed to the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme prior to the privatisation of the scheme in 1994; when this money was paid in; and for what reason.

Andrew Stephenson: The Government’s involvement in the Scheme began at privatisation. Until that point, the scheme was funded by member contributions and British Coal contributions. British Coal’s share of the surplus immediately prior to privatisation was allocated to the Scheme as the Investment Reserve, available to make good any deficit which should arise in the fund.

Wind Power

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many onshore wind turbine applications have been referred to and (b) approved by his Department in each year since 2015.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Energy Act 2016 transferred responsibility for deciding planning applications for onshore wind schemes over 50MW to individual local planning authorities. Prior to that the responsibility had been with the Secretary of State for Energy. Section 77 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 enables my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to call in certain planning applications for onshore wind farms, for his own consideration. A breakdown by year of all current and approved applications, including referrals, can be accessed on the REPD, which can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/renewable-energy-planning-database-monthly-extract.

Wind Power

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many onshore wind turbine applications  have been approved in each region since 2015.

Kelly Tolhurst: Every quarter, BEIS publishes the Renewable Energy Planning Database (REPD), which lists applications for renewable energy projects as they through progress through planning. The latest version was published on 16 April 2019. A breakdown by year and region can be accessed on the REPD, which can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/renewable-energy-planning-database-monthly-extract.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the closure of the feed-in tariff scheme to new applicants, what proportion of Levy Control Framework funding across the lifetime of that scheme will be allocated to (a) schools, (b) community energy groups, (c) individual households, (d) business undertaking self-supply and (e) commercial solar developers.

Kelly Tolhurst: Estimates of funding and spend for the Feed-in Tariffs scheme under the Levy Control Framework are not available broken down by type of beneficiary.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Pakistan: Minority Groups

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has discussed with his Pakistani counterpart land grabbing from members of religious minorities in that country.

Mark Field: The Government strongly condemns discrimination against minorities, including through seizure of land from minority groups. We are deeply concerned about persecution of religious minorities and restrictions on the freedom of religion or belief in Pakistan.The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of advancing the rights of minorities during her telephone call with Imran Khan in August 2018 following his election as Prime Minister of Pakistan. The Minister of State for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon raised our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister during his visit to Pakistan in February 2019.At the UN Universal Periodic Review of Pakistan in November 2017, the UK pressed Pakistan to strengthen the protection of minorities, including by establishing an independent National Commission for Minorities.We recognise the drive by Prime Minister Imran Khan to stop land seizures. We regularly raise our concerns about the protection of minority communities with the Government of Pakistan at senior levels. We will continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to guarantee fully the rights of all Pakistani citizens, including religious minorities, and to honour its international obligations.

China: Taiwan

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to improve relations between China and Taiwan.

Mark Field: We have a constructive and positive dialogue with China on major global issues, which enables us to have an open and frank discussion on difficult issues. We are clear in our discussions with China that our longstanding policy on Taiwan has not changed: we consider the Taiwan issue one that should be settled by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue. We have made clear our concern at any activity by China and Taiwan that risks destabilising the status quo.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had on the situation in Yemen in his meeting with his counterpart in the US Administration on 8 May 2019.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK remains committed to the UN-led political process and will continue to work with the US and other partners in delivering this. The Foreign Secretary hosted a meeting of the Yemen Quad on 26 April in London, where Quad members, including the US, underlined their commitment to a comprehensive political solution for the conflict in Yemen and their endorsement of the agreements reached in Stockholm by the Yemeni parties in December 2018. On 8 May, the Foreign Secretary held discussions with the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, about Yemen, where such commitments were reaffirmed.

Iran: Ethnic Groups

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Iranian counterpart on the effect of Iranian water policies on the Ahwazi Arab population in that country.

Dr Andrew Murrison: ​No representations have been made on the topic of Iranian water policies towards the Ahwazi Arab population. However, we are concerned by the substantial violations of the rights of ethnic minorities and their defenders in Iran and therefore, we continue to support the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in Iran in monitoring and reporting on the rights of ethnic minorities in the country.

North Korea: Sanctions

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to enforce international sanctions on North Korea.

Mark Field: The Government is actively working with international partners to fully implement all relevant UN Security Council measures in respect of North Korea. The UK has contributed four Royal Navy vessels in the past year to a US-coordinated maritime sanctions enforcement operation. We have lobbied widely to encourage all States to enforce sanctions on North Korea and to stem major sources of illicit revenue for North Korea, such as overseas labourers and cyber-crime. Until North Korea takes concrete steps towards its complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation sanctions must remain and all states must continue to enforce them in full.We also welcome the work of the UN Panel of Experts who report on States’ implementation of UN Security Council measures. The Panel’s latest report details continued evasion of sanctions by North Korea. The Panel of Experts reports can be found at https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/sanctions/1718/panel_experts/reports.​

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Former Ministers

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department has paid to hon. Members under section 4 of the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 since 13 July 2016.

Sir Alan Duncan: Any such payments are published in the department's audited annual accounts, and these accounts can be found on gov.uk.

France and New Zealand: Social Media

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his (a) French and (b) New Zealand counterpart on reducing the amount of violent and terrorist content on social media.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​As a Government we have regular engagement with both our partners in France and New Zealand on how we tackle terrorist content online. The Prime Minister attended the Christchurch Call summit in Paris on online harms on 15 May. She had discussions with both Prime Minister Ardern and President Macron in the sidelines. During the summit she showcased the Government's leadership on making a safer internet for all our citizens. The UK will be the first country to establish a regulatory framework that tackles a range of online harms. We will lead international efforts by setting a coherent, proportionate and effective approach that reflects our commitment to a free, open and secure internet. This is why, together with our partners from France and New Zealand, we have signed up to a joint pledge, called the "Christchurch Call To Action", to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. This is the latest example of UK leadership on this issue.

Palestinians: Foreign Relations

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the objectives of the Government’s diplomatic and political policy on Palestine are for 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK remains committed to the Palestinian people. Our priorities for 2019 include continuing to support a negotiated settlement leading to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state, based on 1967 borders with agreed land swaps, Jerusalem as the shared capital of both states, and a just, fair, agreed and realistic settlement for refugees. We want to work with the Palestinians and the Israelis to address the financial crisis faced by the Palestinian Authority. I discussed these priorities with the Palestinian Foreign Minister Dr Riyad Al Malki when he visited London on 16 May.​

Hungary: Foreign Relations

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the objectives of the Government’s diplomatic and political policy on Hungary are for 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The objectives of the Government's diplomatic and political policy on Hungary for 2019 are to build on our long history of friendship and co-operation. We will deepen and broaden our bilateral relationship to deliver greater prosperity and security for UK nationals. The Government will continue to work closely with the Hungarian Government, businesses, civil society, non-governmental organisations and religious communities on our shared values and in areas of common interest including: prosperity; science and innovation; media freedom; defence; security; and foreign policy.

Poland: Foreign Relations

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the objectives of the Government’s diplomatic and political policy on Poland are for 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The objectives of the Government's diplomatic and political policy on Poland are to strengthen our close, long-standing and vibrant relationship and take it from 'good' to 'great', as the Prime Minister challenged us to do at the Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) in December 2016. Our two countries enjoy frequent ministerial contact, a thriving civil society forum and strong people-to-people links thanks, in part, to the contribution of the Polish diaspora in the UK. All of this supports our efforts to work even more closely with Poland and to deliver the Government's objectives on the key issues that connect us: defence and security; foreign policy; the economy and business; and science and innovation.

Italy: Foreign Relations

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the objectives of the Government’s diplomatic and political policy on Italy are for 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The Government's overarching objective for diplomatic and political policy on Italy for 2019 is to develop still further the already deep and broad bilateral relationship. Our delivery will focus on key areas of common interest including: trade and investment; defence, security and foreign policy; cultural engagement, and preparing for the UK-Italy 2020 Year of Culture; tackling transnational crime and terrorism; science and innovation; and education. In delivering this we will harness our already extensive network across the full spectrum of business, governmental and non-governmental bodies, and continue to foster the already strong people-to-people links between Italy and the UK.

Sri Lanka: Nature Conservation and Terrorism

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Sri Lankan Government on (a) their security concerns in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday bombings in that country and (b) cooperation on protection of endangered species since the decision to postpone the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora's World Wildlife Conference.

Mark Field: We are continuing to assess the security situation in Sri Lanka following the Easter Sunday attacks, and are in regular discussion with the Sri Lankan Government. Security operations in Sri Lanka are ongoing and we assess that it is very likely that terrorists will try to mount further terrorist attacks. The Prime Minister offered UK assistance in a phone call with the Sri Lankan Prime Minister immediately after the attacks. The Minister of State for Security, Ben Wallace, visited Sri Lanka on 2-3 May to demonstrate UK solidarity and to take forward discussions on what UK support would be most helpful. We are continuing to engage with the Sri Lankan authorities on the security situation, including the outbreak of violence in North Western province on 13 May, and on UK support.We respect the decision of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Secretariat to postpone the forthcoming COP18 and are grateful for the work undertaken thus far. The UK will continue to work closely with Sri Lanka and other international partners on the protection of endangered species and promotion of the conservation of the world's wildlife through our membership of international agreements such as CITES.

Israel: Official Visits

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many visits Government Ministers have made to Hebron since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Holding answer received on 16 May 2019



According to a review of relevant records, we are aware of at least seven visits that have been made to Hebron by Government Ministers in an official capacity since 2010.

Attorney General

Rape: Disclosure of Information

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Attorney General, what recent assessment he has made of the effect on victims of rape of CPS rape and sexual offence legal guidance in relation to disclosure of medical records and counselling notes.

Lucy Frazer: All complainants are entitled to protection from unnecessary and unjustified invasion of their private lives. Medical records and counselling notes will routinely engage an individual’s Article 8 ECHR right to privacy. CPS guidance is clear that where it is a reasonable line of enquiry in the investigation, the police should obtain the complainant’s informed consent to gain access to these records and, in the limited circumstances where it is appropriate, to enable disclosure of material to the defence. Where records amount to unused material, prosecutors will robustly apply the relevant statutory provisions when deciding whether such material should be disclosed to the defence. The CPS is working with the police and stakeholders to ensure complainants are aware of why their records are required and how they will be used to allow them to make an informed decision.

Attorney General: Former Ministers

Justin Madders: To ask the Attorney General, how much his Department has paid to hon. Members under section 4 of the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 since 13 July 2016.

Lucy Frazer: The Attorney General’s Office has made no payments to Honourable Members under section 4 of the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 since 13 July 2016. Since 13 July 2016, two Ministers have left office, both were as a result of a Ministerial reshuffle and as such no severance payments were made. Reports of any Ministerial severance pay are published in the audited annual report and accounts for HM Procurator General and Treasury Solicitor and can be found on gov.uk.

Department of Health and Social Care

HIV Infection: Drugs

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to increase the availability of HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) in (a) Bristol and (b) England.

Seema Kennedy: In February 2019, additional HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Impact trial allocation places were released to those sexual health clinics in Bristol, the Bristol Royal Infirmary and the Concord Clinic participating in the PrEP trial.These additional places in Bristol are part of the overall expansion of 13,000 additional PrEP trial places across England, increasing the total number of places to 26,000 for participating clinics. The trial website can be viewed at the following link:https://www.prepimpacttrial.org.uk/join-the-trial

Social Services: Fees and Charges

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number of years a person would need to spend in a residential care home before benefitting from an (a) £72,000 cap and (b) £100,000 cap on the cost of care; if he will make it his policy to introduce free personal care in England; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage: The social care Green Paper will bring forward ideas for including an element of risk pooling in the system, which will help to protect people from the highest costs. To allow for fuller engagement and development of the approach, with reforms to the care system and the way it is paid for considered in the round, we will not be taking forward the previous Government’s plans to implement a cap on care costs in 2020. Further details on the Government’s plans will be set out after we have consulted on the different options.

Healthy Start Scheme

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to encourage (a) Morrisons, (b) Tesco, (c) Asda, (d) Sainsburys and (d) other supermarket chains to promote the acceptance of Healthy Start Vouchers to their customers; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Information about the Healthy Start scheme is available to the public and retailers on the Healthy Start website. Retailers are encouraged to use promotional materials available on the Healthy Start website to promote their acceptance of the vouchers.

Mental Health Services

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what mental health support is available to the families of (a) victims and (b) perpetrators of violence.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Clinical commissioning groups are responsible for providing services which are responsive to any physical or mental health needs of family members of victims or perpetrators of violence. Talking therapy is available for people affected by depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder through the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme, delivered by psychological practitioners or counsellors who provide appropriate treatment to those affected by violence.The Prime Minister recently hosted a summit to tackle serious youth violence, which focused on a multi-agency and cross-government response to violent crime. The Government recognises the importance of using and sharing data effectively to identify those in need of support, including witnesses and families of those affected. Independent Domestic Abuse Advisers are also available through local authorities.

Self-harm and Suicide

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on levels of (a) self-harm and (b) suicide among victims of violence.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on levels of (a) self-harm and (b) suicide among family members of victims of violence.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The data requested is not held. Information is not collected centrally on levels of self harm and suicide among victims of violence or family members of victims of violence.

Crimes of Violence

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the cost of violent crime to the NHS.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department has not made an assessment of the cost of violent crime to the National Health Service.

Abortion

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to include abortion providers among those organisations which must provide a disclosure statement when responding to public consultations.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department is not aware of any plans to put an obligation on abortion providers to provide a ‘disclosure statement’ when responding to consultations.

Health: Research

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the article entitled When Ethics and politics collide in donor funded global health research, published in the Lancet on 22 March 2019, what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department does not interfere with independent researchers.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department is allocating £619.5 million of Official Development Assistance (ODA) research funding under the current Spending Review. The Department’s global health research programming applies the Haldane Principle to assure independence of research across four strategic programmes. All research funding is awarded following open competition and independent expert review, with strategic input and guidance on research programming provided by relevant independent scientific advisory groups.

Health: Research

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the article entitled When Ethics and politics collide in donor funded global health research, published in the Lancet on 22 March 2019, what research commissioned by his Department and funded by the public purse has not been published.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department received Official Development Assistance (ODA) research funding in 2016, and began commissioning global health research projects shortly afterwards. In line with the Department’s commitment to meet the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) standards for transparency of ODA spend, details of all research projects funded through the Department’s ODA allocation are reported to IATI and published online via d-portal. Whilst the Department is responsible for allocating ODA research funding, the responsibility for publishing research outputs lies with the researchers themselves, as appropriate and relevant to their work. Research projects directly commissioned and funded through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Global Health Research programme are contractually obliged to publish their final report, which will be made publicly available through the NIHR Journals Library, along with any additional publications throughout the project lifetime. Published research acknowledges that the views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of Department.

Dementia

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Alzheimer’s UK May 2019 report entitled Fix Dementia Care and that report’s identification of a dementia penalty on people with that condition, what plans he has to ensure that costs associated with dementia are covered by the NHS.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government has committed to publishing a Green Paper on adult social care at the earliest opportunity, setting out proposals for reform and will bring forward ideas for including an element of risk pooling in the system, which will help to protect people from the highest costs. We are committed to ensuring everyone has access to the care and support they need, based on a principle of shared responsibility.The NHS Long Term Plan, published on 7 January 2019, commits the National Health Service to continuing to improve the care provided to people with dementia and their carers. The National Implementation Framework, to be published imminently, will provide further information on how the Long Term Plan will be implemented. Additional details, based on local health system five year plans, will be brought together in a detailed National Implementation Programme in the autumn.

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what structures and procedures are in place to (a) monitor and (b) assess the effectiveness of the work of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Stephen Hammond: The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional membership association, independent of government, working to improve health care for women both in the United Kingdom and worldwide.The College is governed by a Royal Charter, from which are derived the College Regulations. These guide the governance, management and business arrangements of the College.The RCOG is a registered charity in England and Wales and is subject to charity law. The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities.

Hospitals: Discharges

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of planned transfers under the Transforming Care programme specify that the person will move into another in-patient facility.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of people (a) discharged and (b) transferred under the Transforming Care programme  were moved directly into another in-patient facility.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many discharges under the Transforming Care programme were delayed as a result of no alternative placement being available.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients have a discharge date planned under the Transforming Care programme.

Caroline Dinenage: The data is not available in the precise format requested.Based on the latest Assuring Transformation (AT) data for March 2019, we estimate that around 30% of planned transfers under the Transforming Care programme would be to another inpatient facility.The most recent AT data indicates that in March 2019, 25 people were transferred to another hospital setting. This was 16% of the total number of people discharged or transferred within the month. In March 2019, there were 105 delayed discharges recorded in the AT data. The reason for the delayed discharge was recorded as follows: Reason for delayed dischargeNumber of inpatientsLack of agreed health care funding10Lack of agreed social care funding15Awaiting non-acute National Health Service care5Awaiting residential home30Awaiting nursing home0Awaiting care package in own home10Awaiting community equipment0Patient or family choice10Lack of local health provision10Lack of social care support20Lack of suitable housing provision40Other reason for delay50 The reasons do not sum to the total number of delays as multiple reasons may be assigned to an individual patient. In March 2019, 965 patients have a discharge planned to a community or residential setting.

Homelessness: Death

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 11 April 2019 to Question 244122 on Homelessness: Death, what definitions of abuse and neglect are provided to local authorities.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department has published the Care and Support Statutory Guidance, which provides information on what constitutes abuse or neglect. The list is not intended to be exhaustive, rather it provides guidance on the sort of behaviour which could give rise to a safeguarding concern. It includes physical, domestic, sexual, psychological, discriminatory, financial and material abuse. Local authorities should not limit their view of what constitutes abuse and should consider the circumstances of the individual’s case.

Prisoners: Injuries

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will introduce a pilot to trial screening for traumatic brain injuries on entry into prison.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS England has commissioned liaison and diversion services in custody suites and courts aimed at identifying those who are vulnerable. It is anticipated that by 2020-21, that service will cover the whole of England.All children and young people within the secure estate are screened for brain injury through the comprehensive health assessment tool.The NHS England prison health care national standards service specification requires providers to screen individuals where it is suspected that they may have an acquired brain injury. If an adult prisoner presents with a significant brain injury, a specialist neurological referral is made.There are specific diagnostics for those whose presentations suggest a cause for concern. Where individuals so assessed are then sentenced to custody, this information will be passed to the escorts for prison reception.

Social Care: Abuse

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the trends in the level of (a) abuse directed towards patients in social care and (b) the number of convictions as a result of that abuse.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department does not directly collect data about numbers of people who have been abused and we do not collect data on convictions as a result of that abuse. However, we do monitor Section 42 enquiries and the outcome of these enquiries, which are about local authorities establishing whether an adult in their area:- has needs for care and support (whether or not the authority is meeting any of those needs);- is experiencing, or is at risk of, abuse or neglect; and- as a result of those needs is unable to protect himself or herself against the abuse or neglect or the risk of it.Section 42 of the Care Act 2014 also requires councils to determine whether any action needs to be taken as a result of their enquiries.The total number of Section 42 enquiries that commenced under the Care Act during 2017-18 fell by 1.1% to 131,860 compared to 2016-17.

Vaccination: Children

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that parents are given adequate advice and information on vaccination programmes.

Seema Kennedy: Public Health England (PHE) ensures health professionals have current, accurate information on the benefits of immunisation, so they can communicate this information to parents. PHE provides the Department with expert evidence and advice (and nationally procures many vaccines). PHE also supports NHS England with information, expert advice, capacity and support at national and local level.PHE recommends people visit the National Health Service website as the NHS is a highly trusted source of information. This is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/There are also a range of information leaflets, available online and from health professionals, about the different vaccination programmes at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation#immunisation-leaflets-and-guidance-for-parents

Dementia: Diagnosis

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) dementia and (b) Alzheimer’s are diagnosed (i) correctly and (ii) as quickly as possible.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government’s mandate to NHS England requires NHS England to deliver the actions set out in the Challenge on Dementia 2020 Implementation Plan. The Implementation Plan envisages that:“In every part of the country people with dementia having equal access to diagnosis as for other conditions, with an expectation that the national average for an initial assessment should be 6 weeks following a referral from a GP (where clinically appropriate), and that no one should be waiting several months for an initial assessment of dementia.”We have made great strides in delivering the Challenge: this includes being above NHS England’s target for two thirds of people living with dementia to receive a formal diagnosis. Our focus now is on reducing the variation of local diagnosis rates and NHS England have programmes in place to further improve the quality and timeliness of diagnosis.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology in each Clinical Commissioning Group.

Seema Kennedy: The information is not held in the format requested

Medicine: Research

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of ensuring it is made clear whenever health research is commercially funded.

Caroline Dinenage: The merits of clarifying research funding sources are enshrined in Health Research Authority policy on health and care research which is available at the following link:https://www.hra.nhs.uk/documents/1068/uk-policy-framework-health-social-care-research.pdfResearchers are required to register studies on a public research register before they begin. All trials of medicines are automatically published by the European Union on the EU clinical trial register which is available at the following link:https://www.clinicaltrialsregister.eu/

Brain: Injuries

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to establish a cross-departmental taskforce to address the issues and recommendations outlined in the report of the all-party parliamentary group on acquired brain injury entitled Acquired brain injury and neurorehabilitation - time for change.

Seema Kennedy: Officials at the Department worked with colleagues across Government to respond to recommendations of the report by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on acquired brain injury. This response, which outlined the broad range of activity underway to address the issues raised by the APPG, was issued on 19 February 2019. A copy of the response is attached.



APPG Response
(PDF Document, 597.77 KB)

Department of Health and Social Care: Retirement

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to staff in his Department (a) in their transition to retirement and (b) to (i) maintain and (ii) increase the physical and mental wellbeing staff planning for retirement.

Caroline Dinenage: Departmental support for staff transitioning into retirement includes a Pre Retirement learning event, provided via Civil Service Learning, which raises awareness of available information and resources, supports proactive planning for making the most of retirement and awareness of how to claim Civil Service and state pensions.All staff in the Department who are part of the Civil Service Pension Scheme, have access to MyCSP, the Civil Service pension provider, which provides online resources and tools, such as the Retirement Modeller and a Pension Portal and also provides individual pension advice over the phone.The Department also offers and wherever possible, supports staff requests for partial retirement to support individual needs and also as a transition to future retirement.

Foetuses

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answers of 6 February 2019 to Question 214478 on Foetuses: Analgesics and of 26 February 2019 to Question 223137 on Abortion, whose role it is to oversee clinical practices to ensure (a) consistency of practice and (b) equality of patient advice and care.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Individual organisations should have in place their own clinical governance and ensure their clinical practices are in line with any national guidelines. It is the role of the Care Quality Commission to monitor, inspect and regulate healthcare services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety. Healthcare professional regulators, including the General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council, are responsible for assuring the fitness to practise of healthcare professionals, and can take action against professionals who do not meet the standards for professional conduct set by the regulators.

Insulin

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether stocks of insulin will continue to be stockpiled to prepare for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: The Department fully understands that maintaining access to insulin is vitally important to many people in this country.The Government remains committed to leaving the European Union with a deal. We have now reached agreement with the EU on an extension to the Article 50 period until 31 October at the latest, with the option to leave earlier as soon as a Withdrawal Agreement has been ratified.Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, there will be an implementation period running till the end of 2020, during which there will be no changes to the current trading arrangements with the EU. Therefore, if the Withdrawal Agreement is ratified, the supply of medicines will continue on the same basis it does now during this period.Leaving without a deal remains the legal default at the end of the extension period if no Withdrawal Agreement is agreed. Therefore, as a responsible Government, we will continue to prepare to minimise any disruption to the supply of medicines and medical products in a potential ‘no deal’ scenario.We are continuing to work with trade bodies and other stakeholders to review the position carefully before sharing further guidance at the earliest opportunity. Stockpiled medicines were not procured by the Department as part of our ‘no deal’ plans and remain the property of medicines suppliers. On 26 April we wrote to pharmaceutical companies, including those who supply insulin, asking in the meantime, that all ‘no deal’ measures (such as stockpiles, additional buffer stocks etc) should remain in place but on hold until further guidance is available.We are confident that if everyone, including suppliers, freight companies, our European neighbours, and the health and care system, does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products should be uninterrupted in the event we leave the EU without a deal.

Insulin

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of insulin procured before 29 March 2019 as part of preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal that has been (a) destroyed, (b) redistributed and (c) sold back to manufacturers.

Stephen Hammond: The Department fully understands that maintaining access to insulin is vitally important to many people in this country.The Government remains committed to leaving the European Union with a deal. We have now reached agreement with the EU on an extension to the Article 50 period until 31 October at the latest, with the option to leave earlier as soon as a Withdrawal Agreement has been ratified.Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, there will be an implementation period running till the end of 2020, during which there will be no changes to the current trading arrangements with the EU. Therefore, if the Withdrawal Agreement is ratified, the supply of medicines will continue on the same basis it does now during this period.Leaving without a deal remains the legal default at the end of the extension period if no Withdrawal Agreement is agreed. Therefore, as a responsible Government, we will continue to prepare to minimise any disruption to the supply of medicines and medical products in a potential ‘no deal’ scenario.We are continuing to work with trade bodies and other stakeholders to review the position carefully before sharing further guidance at the earliest opportunity. Stockpiled medicines were not procured by the Department as part of our ‘no deal’ plans and remain the property of medicines suppliers. On 26 April we wrote to pharmaceutical companies, including those who supply insulin, asking in the meantime, that all ‘no deal’ measures (such as stockpiles, additional buffer stocks etc) should remain in place but on hold until further guidance is available.We are confident that if everyone, including suppliers, freight companies, our European neighbours, and the health and care system, does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products should be uninterrupted in the event we leave the EU without a deal.

Primary Health Care

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he had with (a) the British Medical Association, (b) the Royal College of General Practitioners and (c) other representative groups before announcing the timetable for the creation of primary care networks.

Seema Kennedy: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has met with both Richard Vautrey and Helen Stokes-Lampard as representatives of the profession to discuss a range of issues, including, but not limited to, the creation of Primary Care Networks. In addition, Departmental officials have been in regular communication with both the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) and the British Medical Association (BMA) throughout the development of the Primary Care Networks policy and will continue these close working relationships as the networks are implemented. The Primary Care Network Directed Enhanced Service specification, which sets out the timetable for networks, was agreed with the General Practitioners Committee and the BMA as part of negotiations on the contract for 2019/20.

General Practitioners: Finance

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to allocate additional funding to GP practices to enable the recruitment and appointment of Primary Care Network medical directors.

Seema Kennedy: Each Primary Care Network (PCN) is required to appoint a Clinical Director. Under the terms of the Network Contract Directed Enhanced Service (DES) contract specification published by NHS England in March 2019, PCNs can claim funding for this role. It is a population-based payment calculated using a baseline equivalent of 0.25 Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) per 50,000 registered population size, as at 1 January 2019 (one WTE being paid £137,516 in 2019/20). This is a payment of £0.51430 per registered patient for the period 1 July 2019 to 31 March 2020 (which equates to £0.057 per patient per month), reflecting the fact that the Network Contract DES begins in July 2019 - this will be the point at which the Clinical Directors take up their posts.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Abortion

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 15 March 2019 to Question 231428, since what year his Department has used that single source of data on illegal abortions overseas; and what the cost to the public purse has been of tackling illegal abortions overseas in 2019.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK Government uses a range of data sources and publications to inform our policy on how to tackle unsafe abortion, as cited in our published position. The UK Government has used and reported on the Guttmacher Institute estimates in our Single Departmental Plan Family Planning sector page since July 2018. DFID’s bilateral and multi-country programmes take an integrated approach in order to meet a wide range of women’s reproductive health needs. For example, providing a woman with holistic care for gender-based violence, HIV counselling, safe-abortion care and information on family planning. Because of the integrated nature of this work, it is not possible to provide a break-down of funding on safe abortion services alone. The aim of the UK Government’s work on sexual and reproductive health and rights overseas is to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions, increase the use of voluntary family planning, and give women control over their own bodies and lives.

Sierra Leone: Debts

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the Government’s policy is on the cancellation of debts owed by Sierra Leone; and what steps the Government is taking (a) nationally and (b) internationally to reduce that country’s debt overhang.

Harriett Baldwin: The Government of Sierra Leone has not requested debt relief. Sierra Leone is not currently in debt distress, although it is at high risk. Any country wishing to pursue debt relief should do so through the existing multilateral fora. UK bilateral aid to Sierra Leone includes ongoing support to increase revenue generation and improve public financial management to address their debt position. In the last 6 months, the UK has supported decisions taken by the IMF and the World Bank to provide additional financial support packages for Sierra Leone. Through our contributions to the EU and African Development Bank, we are also providing further support to the Government of Sierra Leone to finance their development needs.

Sierra Leone: Overseas Aid

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what projects with a value of more than £1m his Department has commissioned in Sierra Leone; and (a) what those projects are and (b) which organisations are carrying out the work on those projects.

Harriett Baldwin: Information on projects commissioned in Sierra Leone by the Department for International Development, with a value of more than £1 million, is available on the Development Tracker website. This is accessible via the following link: https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/ This also includes details of the partner organisations we are working with to deliver them.

Hebron: Visits Abroad

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, on how many occasions Ministers in her Department have visited Hebron since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: According to a review of relevant records in the provided time window, four visits have been made to Hebron by DFID Ministers since 2010. UK officials continue to monitor the situation in Hebron, especially following the withdrawal of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron.

Overseas Aid

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the aid budget is used to influence overseas governments to make policy changes.

Harriett Baldwin: UK aid directly and indirectly informs and supports policy changes in partner countries in line with their challenges and priorities and consistent with a focus on eradicating poverty and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. This also serves the UK’s national interest.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what (a) information his Department holds on and (b) what estimate his Department has made of the number of abortions in other countries that are funded by development spending in each of the last five years.

Dr Andrew Murrison: DFID has a range of bilateral and multi-country programmes supporting a package of women’s reproductive and maternal health information and family planning services. Because of the integrated nature of this work, it is not possible to provide a break-down of funding on safe abortion services alone. By helping the world’s poorest women access modern contraception, the UK government will prevent an estimated 6 million unintended pregnancies and 3 million abortions on average each year.

Department for Education

Vocational Training: North Cornwall

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to allocate additional funding to vocational training in order to improve social mobility in North Cornwall.

Anne Milton: The further education sector plays a key role in ensuring quality vocational training opportunities and improving social mobility across England, including in North Cornwall. We have protected the base rate of funding for 16 to 19 year olds until the end of the current spending review period in 2020. Additional funding is provided through the 16 to 19 funding formula, including over £500 million across England in 2018-19 to support disadvantaged students and therefore improving social mobility. Overall, the government plans to invest nearly £7 billion nationally during 2018-19 to ensure that there is a place in education or training for every 16 to 19 year old. Through the Adult Education Budget, we are continuing to invest in further education for adults aged 19 and above, including those who are furthest from the labour market, to support their progression to further study, employment or an apprenticeship. We are also supporting adults who have been motivated to move out of unemployment and are in low-paid or low-skilled jobs to upskill at no charge and to progress further. We are creating 3 million high quality apprenticeships that will change the lives of apprentices and the prospects of businesses. Apprenticeships disproportionately benefit people from lower socio-economic backgrounds. Delivering more and better quality apprenticeships will ensure that more people from these backgrounds are enabled to gain the skills and training they need to build successful careers. The European Social Fund (ESF) has been an important source of skills and employment funding used to support those furthest from learning and the labour market. Following Brexit, whilst we will no longer have access to the ESF, the government has committed to create a UK Shared Prosperity Fund to reduce inequalities between communities and help deliver sustainable, inclusive growth. The department works closely with HM Treasury (HMT) in considering further education funding. We are considering the efficiency and resilience of the sector and assessing how far current funding and regulatory structures enable high quality provision, including vocational training. We continue to look carefully at these issues with HMT in preparation for the Spending Review.

English Baccalaureate

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the English Baccalaureate on UK performance within international league tables.

Nick Gibb: The English Baccalaureate (EBacc) measures pupils’ performance against a range of core academic subjects, and keeps young people’s options open for further study and future careers. The international comparisons studies that the Department participates in assess pupils’ performance in reading, mathematics and science. The proportion of pupils in state-funded schools taking the EBacc combination of subjects has increased from 22% in 2010 to 38% in 2018. In particular, the proportion of pupils taking history or geography has increased from 48% to 78%. A Sutton Trust report, available at https://www.suttontrust.com/research-paper/changing-the-subject/, shows that pupils in 300 schools which had increased EBacc take up were more likely to achieve good GCSEs in maths and English, and that pupils eligible for the pupil premium also benefited. A study by the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, available at https://cls.ucl.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/CLS-WP-201711-Incentivising-specific-combinations-of-subjects-does-it-make-any-difference-to-university-access.pdf, found that studying the EBacc combination of GCSE subjects increases the likelihood that a pupil will stay on in full-time education.The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results for 2015 showed that our 15 year olds continue to perform significantly above the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average in science, at the OECD average for mathematics, and, for the first time, above the OECD average in reading. Results for PISA 2018 will be available in December 2019.

Pupils: Discipline

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to reduce disruptive behaviour in the classroom.

Nick Gibb: All schools are required by the law to develop and publish a behaviour policy. The Department for Education produces guidance for head teachers and school staff on developing school behaviour policy and explains the powers members of staff have to maintain discipline in the classroom. The full guidance can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/488034/Behaviour_and_Discipline_in_Schools_-_A_guide_for_headteachers_and_School_Staff.pdf. In 2016, the Government commissioned behaviour expert Tom Bennett to conduct an independent review on behaviour management in schools. His report ‘Creating a culture’, published in 2017, focused on leadership, culture and systems used to tackle disruptive pupil behaviour, and provides practical advice for head teachers about creating a school culture that prevents low level disruption, maintains good discipline and promotes pupils’ education, focus and wellbeing. The full report can be viewed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/602487/Tom_Bennett_Independent_Review_of_Behaviour_in_Schools.pdf. Building on this review the Department announced a £10 million investment to support schools and teachers to share best practice and knowledge on behaviour management and classroom management. As part of this Tom Bennett, has been appointed our lead Behaviour Adviser, supporting the Department to set up and run these new behaviour support networks. Most recently, as part of our response to the Timpson review of school exclusion, published on 7 May 2019, the Department committed to revising guidance which offers clearer, more consistent guidance on managing behaviour, the use of in-school units and the sorts of circumstances where it may appropriate to use exclusion. A copy of the review and the Government response can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-exclusions-review-call-for-evidence.

STEM Subjects: Higher Education

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to encourage students to study STEM subjects at university.

Chris Skidmore: The department is encouraging more students into Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and training at all stages from primary school to higher education. We are improving careers advice in schools so that young people are aware of the high quality options available for both technical and academic routes into STEM. They also have access to information about the variety of careers that STEM pathways have to offer. STEM activities, including employer talks and work visits, are built into school career programmes and the Careers & Enterprise Company funds opportunities for young people to meet a wide range of STEM employers.As part of the UK’s Industrial Strategy, the government has committed substantial spending on mathematics, digital and technical education to increase the take-up and better teaching of STEM subjects in schools. For example, the department is funding an £84 million programme to improve computing teaching and participation, and the Advanced Maths Premium, which aims to support schools and colleges in tackling some of the financial barriers to increase participation in post-16 maths. We also fund the Stimulating Physics Network and Isaac Physics to improve the take up of physics post-16, especially among girls.

Schools: Racial Discrimination

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to tackle racist behaviour in schools.

Nick Gibb: Schools are required by law to have a behaviour policy that outlines measures to prevent racist and other forms of bullying. The Department produces guidance for head teachers and school staff on developing school behaviour policy. The full guidance can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/488034/Behaviour_and_Discipline_in_Schools_-_A_guide_for_headteachers_and_School_Staff.pdf. Under the Equalities Act 2010, schools are under a duty take steps to eliminate harassment, foster good relations, and advance equality of opportunity. Ofsted considers how a school complies with its statutory duties and promotes equality of opportunity, and holds schools to account for racism or other behaviour issues.

Pupils: Absenteeism

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of school days missed by pupils due to (a) gang involvement and (b) incidents of violence in the latest period for which data is available.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is not held centrally regarding data on the number of school days missed due to gang involvement or incidents of violence.A Ministry of Justice study, ‘Examining the Educational Background of Young Knife Possession Offenders,’ showed that around 80% of young knife possession offenders had been persistently absent from education at some point over a five year period. Education is clearly a protective factor for young people, and regular attendance at school or at other education provision is important in ensuring every pupil can meet their full potential. The measures set out in the Government’s response to the Timpson review of school exclusion will play a key role in ensuring that every young person is safe and free to fulfil their potential away from violent crime.

Universities: Disclosure of Information

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with representatives of universities on the sharing of applicants’ pupil premium status and ethnicity directly with universities in order to enabling progress on access and participation.

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the Office for Students on the transmission of data on applicants’ pupil premium status and ethnicity directly to universities in order to support universities’ work on widening participation and access.

Chris Skidmore: Widening access and participation in higher education is a priority for the government. This means that everyone with the capability to succeed in higher education should have the opportunity to participate, regardless of their background or where they grew up.We have made real progress in ensuring universities are open to all, with record rates of disadvantaged 18-year-olds in higher education. However, we know there is further to go to maximise the potential of the talent out there, so it is vital that we build on this progress.Higher education providers need to use good quality and meaningful data to identify disadvantage in order to effectively address disparities in access and participation in higher education. We encourage institutions to use a range of measures to identify disadvantage, including individual-level indicators, area data (such as Participation of Local Areas, Index of Multiple Deprivation or postcode classification from ACORN), school data, intersectional data such as Universities and Colleges Admissions Service’s (UCAS) Multiple Equality Measure, and participation in outreach activities. To this end, we are working with the Office for Students (OfS), UCAS and sector representatives to further explore how we can support universities to improve and enhance access to data.We want institutions to consider a broad range of information in their offers, including the context in which a student’s results were achieved. We are committed to helping universities progress in their efforts to improve access and successful participation for under-represented groups.

Literacy: Essex

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to raise levels of literacy in Essex.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils at the end of (a) Key Stage 1, (b) Key Stage 2 and (c) Key Stage 4 did not meet the expected level of literacy in (i) Witham constituency, (ii) Essex, and (iii) the UK in the last five years for which data is available.

Nick Gibb: The Government is committed to continuing to raise literacy standards, ensuring all children can read fluently and with understanding. Building on the success of our phonics partnerships and phonics roadshows programmes, in 2018 the Department launched a £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. The Department has appointed 34 primary schools across England as English Hubs. Hub schools are taking a leading role in improving the teaching of early reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure.There is a substantial body of evidence that shows that systematic phonics is the most effective method for teaching early reading. Reflecting this, the Department introduced the light touch phonics screening check for year 1 pupils in 2012. Phonics performance is improving: in 2018, there were 163,000 more six-year-olds on track to become fluent readers compared to 2012. This represented 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard in the phonics screening check, compared to just 58% when the check was introduced in 2012.The Department have appointed Myland Community Primary school as an English Hub in Colchester, and Elmhurst Primary School in Newham. Both of these hubs will work with schools in Essex to improve the teaching of early reading. In 2016, new tests and frameworks for teacher assessment were brought in at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, following the introduction of a new, more challenging National Curriculum that set higher expected standards for reading, writing and mathematics. These changes mean that the expected standard from 2016 is higher and not comparable with the expected levels used in previous years' statistics. It is not possible to make direct comparisons between the results before and after the changes in 2016. The number and percentage of state-funded pupils, at the end of Key Stage 1, 2 and 4, who did not achieve the expected level of literacy[1] in Witham, Essex and England are in the attached tables. Figures relate to academic years 2013/14 to 2017/18. The Department does not produce statistics for Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, or the UK as a whole, and therefore these figures relate to England only. [1] There is not a definitive definition of ‘expected level of literacy’ for each key stage. Figures have been provided for achievement in English, or English subjects, in the headline or additional measures that were used for that key stage, in each academic year.



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Bullying

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to tackle abuse directed at teachers from parents (a) online and (b) in person.

Nick Gibb: The majority of schools and colleges provide safe and secure working environments for teaching staff. All staff should be able to work in an environment in which pupils can develop, and staff can have fulfilling careers free from harassment and bullying. Schools and colleges have a duty and a responsibility to protect both pupils and staff. Any bullying of staff, including cyberbullying, is unacceptable and it is important that schools and colleges take measures to prevent and tackle this. The Department provides specific guidance for headteachers and staff on how to protect themselves from cyberbullying and how to tackle it if it happens. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has recently announced that this guidance will be reviewed and updated. The Department’s guidance “keeping children safe in education” also makes it clear that online safety training for staff should be integral to a school's safeguarding approach, and that appropriate filters and monitoring systems should be in place to help to safeguard the whole school community. This guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/741314/Keeping_Children_Safe_in_Education__3_September_2018_14.09.18.pdf. To prevent abusive behaviour in schools, the Department’s guidance on controlling access to premises also makes it clear that it is a criminal offence for a person who is on school premises without lawful authority to cause or permit a nuisance or disturbance. The guidance makes it clear that a school may consider that aggressive, abusive or insulting behaviour, or language from a parent presents a risk to staff or pupils. This guidance can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/controlling-access-to-school-premises. The Department is currently developing new school and college security guidance which will be published later this year. This will include references to help deal with violent crime, and encourage the development of policies and culture to help reduce and address any violence-related incidents.

Universities: Northern Ireland

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of a reduction in tuition fees for English students on Universities in Northern Ireland.

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of a reduction in tuition fees on the ability of universities in the constituent parts of the UK to meet the objective of the Industrial Strategy to create prosperity in those nations.

Chris Skidmore: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 03 April 2019 to Question 237750.

Children in Care: Health

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to monitor the application of the statutory guidance entitled Promoting the health and well-being of looked-after children - Statutory guidance for local authorities, clinical commissioning groups and NHS England, with particular reference to foetal alcohol syndrome.

Nadhim Zahawi: ​The statutory guidance sets out local authorities’ duty to make sure each child they look after has a health assessment of their physical, emotional and mental health needs. The health and care system is responsible for providing this assessment. Assessments should take into account the health conditions that may be more prevalent in looked-after children, including foetal alcohol syndrome.As part of their inspection of local authority children’s services, Ofsted assesses the progress and experience of children in care, including whether their physical and mental health needs are being effectively identified and met.

Pupil Premium: Leeds

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils received the pupil premium in each primary school in Leeds City Council area in 2017-18.

Nadhim Zahawi: The number of pupils in receipt of pupil premium in schools in Leeds local authority and all other schools in financial year 2017-2018 can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-conditions-of-grant-2017-to-2018.

Morning Lane Associates

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 250518, what the individual payments were; and what work they were (a) for and (b) who they were authorised by.

Anne Milton: A breakdown of payments to Morning Lane Associates (MLA) totalling £1,803,915.14 is attached. Payments were made to support the roll-out of the Reclaiming Social Work pilot of the Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme. All MLA monies were paid through a section 14 grant which means that the department pays in arrears based on actuals. Ministers agreed to fund MLA on the advice of the Innovation Programme Investment Committee.



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Secondary Education: Free School Meals

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of students qualify for free school meals in each secondary school in (a) Ashfield constituency; and what the average number is of students that qualify for free school meals in secondary schools in England.

Nadhim Zahawi: The number of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) in England is published at the annual ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ statistical release: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2018. Data for each school is available in the ‘Schools pupils and their characteristics 2018’, underlying data, contained in file ‘Schools_Pupils_and_their_Characteristics _2018_Schools_Pupils_UD’. The figures can be filtered by parliamentary constituency name (column X), school phase e.g. state-funded secondary schools (column N). Column EF, EG provide the number and % of pupils known to be eligible for FSM, respectively. The proportion of pupils eligible for FSM in state-funded secondary schools in England is provided in Table 3a of the national tables.

Educational Exchanges

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to promote international programmes of exchange in higher education after the UK leaves the EU.

Chris Skidmore: The government has made clear that it values international exchange and collaboration in education and training as part of our vision for a global Britain. We are committed to the UK remaining open to the world, and becoming even more global and internationalist in outlook. That is why the Department for Education supports a number of outward mobility and exchange programmes which broaden access to international opportunities, schemes such as Fulbright scholarships and Generation UK China.Irrespective of the outcome of Article 50 negotiations, the UK and European countries should continue to give young people and students the chance to benefit from each other’s world-leading universities following our exit from the European Union. In addition, the UK is an Erasmus+ programme country and the Withdrawal Agreement ensures that UK entities' and students’ rights to participate in the current programme will remain unaffected for the remainder of the current EU budget cycle. Following ratification of the Agreement, UK-based organisations and people will be able to bid for funding, participate in and lead consortia, for the duration of the current programmes.In addition to this, the UK is open to exploring participation in the Erasmus+ successor scheme for 2021-27, which is currently being discussed in the EU. We will continue to participate in discussions on the draft regulation while we remain an EU Member State and are considering options for future participation in the next Erasmus+ programme. However, a decision on UK participation in the next programme is ultimately a matter for wider negotiations about our future relationship with the EU.As is the duty of a responsible government, we are also preparing for a range of potential outcomes and this includes promoting international mobility through a domestic alternative to Erasmus+.

Ministry of Justice

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Social Security and Child Support Tribunal appeals have taken longer than 52 weeks for a determination, in each of the last five years.

Paul Maynard: The information requested is provided in the table below:SOCIAL SECURITY & CHILD SUPPORT CLEARANCES 1Period Number of clearances that exceeded 52 weeks from receipt1 April 2013 - 31 March 2014 16,1611 April 2014 - 31 March 2015 12,3501 April 2015 - 31 March 2016 3,1001 April 2016 - 31 March 2017 4,0841 April 2017 - 31 March 2018 7,3301 April 2018 - 31 December 2018 2 13,1621. Data include hearings cleared with and without a Tribunal hearing2. The latest period for which data are available. Provisional data and subject to further changeAlthough care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data that are available. It is important that appeals are heard as quickly as possible. Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) recognises there are delays in the system and it is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. This includes 250 judges across the First-tier Tribunal, 125 disability qualified members and up to 230 medical members.In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals. Information on the new digital service can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appealWe are also working with the Department for Work and Pensions to understand what could be done to reduce the number of appeals being submitted to the Tribunal, through their focus on improving decision-making and the mandatory reconsideration process.These measures will increase the capacity of the Tribunal. As a result, the number of appeals outstanding in the Tribunal is starting to fall as the number of cases heard by the Tribunal outweigh those sent to the Tribunal. If this continues, over time, we expect the time it takes for the Tribunal to hear, and the age of, appeals to reduce.The time taken for the Tribunal to hear an appeal is mainly driven by the number of appeals sent to the Tribunal and the capacity of the Tribunal to deal with them. The number of appeals sent to the Tribunal is directly affected by changes in welfare policy.The time it takes the Tribunal to hear an appeal is calculated from the time it is sent to the Tribunal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached after an earlier hearing has been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned once again to the First-tier for its final disposal.HMCTS is very sensitive to the needs of people who may be affected by waiting times for Tribunal hearings. Tribunal staff and judicial office-holders, are trained accordingly, with HMCTS’s reasonable adjustments policy and practice applied where appropriate. Guidance on the policy is published on GOV.UK. If an expedited hearing is sought, or where the Tribunal identifies a case which might benefit from an expedited hearing, a judge or caseworker will make a decision on the issue, taking all the circumstances of the case into account.

Members: Correspondence

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Courts and Justice plans to respond to the letter of 14 March 2019 from the hon. Member for Lincoln on economic domestic abuse.

Paul Maynard: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 15 May 2019.The correct answer should have been:

I apologise to the honourable Member for Lincoln for the delay in responding to her letter dated 14 March. I understand that mya response was sent to her office by my predeccesor, Minister Frazer, on 8 May.

Paul Maynard: I apologise to the honourable Member for Lincoln for the delay in responding to her letter dated 14 March. I understand that mya response was sent to her office by my predeccesor, Minister Frazer, on 8 May.

Sexual Offences: Legal Representation

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what circumstances in cases involving historical sexual abuse are victims entitled to legal representation.

Edward Argar: The Government’s first ever cross-government Victims Strategy outlines our commitments to victims of crime. The Crown Prosecution Service is responsible for the prosecution of criminal cases. Victims of crime are not separately represented in criminal trials. Victims of historic sexual abuse have access to an independent sexual violence adviser (ISVA). The ISVA’s role is to ensure the victim receives the right support before, during and after legal proceedings. As part of proceedings, a victim may be called to give evidence as a witness for the prosecution. ISVAs will work alongside the Court-Based Witness Service to support the victim to give their best evidence and participate in the court process. In April this year, the Ministry of Justice awarded £8m in funding to rape support centres to provide emotional and practical support to victims of sexual violence and historic sexual abuse, including the provision of ISVA services. We also provided a grant of £11.2m to Citizens Advice for the delivery of the Court-Based Witness Service.

Criminal Proceedings: Sexual Offences

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what circumstances in cases involving historical sexual abuse are victims entitled to have character references used in their defence.

Edward Argar: Tackling historical sexual abuse and bringing perpetrators to justice is a government priority. Some victims of historical sexual abuse may be called to give evidence in criminal trials however a victim is not a party to a criminal case, as the Crown prosecutes. Victims and witnesses are not required to defend themselves or provide evidence to support their statements.Rules of evidence do not permit the Crown to call evidence of the good character of a prosecution witness in order to bolster their credibility where it is not relevant to an issue in the case.If the defendant attacks the character of a witness, evidence of the defendant’s bad character may be admissible as evidence.

Sexual Offences: Victims

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what protections exist for victims of historical sexual abuse where the perpetrator remains living in the victim's locality.

Edward Argar: Protection orders are an important tool for keeping victims safe and preventing the continuation or escalation of violence. Protections for victims of sexual offences, including historic abuse include:Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements, which are in place to ensure the successful management of violent and sexual offenders in the community.Sexual Harm Prevention Orders, which can be used to impose a range of restrictions on sexual offenders, including travel restrictions.Sexual Risk Orders, which can be used to impose restrictions on individuals who have done an act of a sexual nature and, as a result, pose a risk of harm to the public in the UK or children or vulnerable adults abroad. For a Sexual Risk Order to be imposed, the individual does not need to have committed an offence.Sex Offender Notification Requirements, which require offenders to provide certain information to the police, for example notifying them if the offender is living in a household with a person under the age of 18. Additionally, the Victim Contact Scheme is available to victims of violent and sexual offences where the offender receives a sentence of 12 months or more. The scheme provides victims with information and advice about the criminal justice process – including being kept informed of key stages of the offender's sentence and to advise on victim-related conditions that can be attached to the offender's release licence. Conditions can be around non-contact or excluding the offender from entering specific locations such as areas where the victim lives or works. The offender risks being recalled to prison should they breach any licence conditions.

Criminal Proceedings: Sexual Offences

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance and training barristers receive on the cross-examination of victims of historical sexual abuse.

Edward Argar: Inns of Court College of Advocacy (ICCA) has developed specialist training for all advocates who question witnesses in cases of a serious sexual nature involving vulnerable adults and children. The training programme goes beyond victims of serious sexual offences. It aims to ensure all advocates understand the key principles of how to approach and question vulnerable people in the justice systemAs set out in the Government’s Victims Strategy, the training programme delivers the manifesto commitment: “Publicly funded advocates will have specialist training in handling victims before taking on serious sexual offences” and goes beyond that commitment. Training is available to all advocates, not just those working on publicly funded cases.

Domestic Violence: North West Durham

Laura Pidcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what support (a) under the Litigants in Person Support Strategy and (b) through the additional grant funding announced in February 2019 will be offered to (i) victims of domestic abuse and (ii) other people from the North West Durham constituency participating in family court proceedings in (A) Durham and (B) Darlington.

Paul Maynard: Since 2014-15, MoJ has invested almost £6.5 million of funding to support litigants in person in the civil and family courts through the Litigants in Person Support Strategy. The strategy works with a range of partners across England and Wales in the advice, voluntary and pro bono sectors to provide practical support for litigants in person. This includes online and self-help resources, as well as access to free or affordable legal advice and representation, where possible. For example, the Support Strategy continues to work with with the North East Law Centre in Newcastle Upon-Tyne to extend its reach and receive referrals from across the region, including from non-specialist services such as GP surgeries, and increase awareness of the expert advice available to litigants in person in the area. In February 2019, we published the Legal Support Action Plan which included a commitment to enhancing support for litigants in person. This will be achieved by increasing the funding provided to the Litigants in Person Support Strategy to £3m a year, for the next two years. We are particularly interested in focusing this additional investment on broadening the evidence base on how the services we are delivering to litigants in person can be made even more effective.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking to increase trade opportunities with Anglosphere countries.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade is committed to building and enhancing our relationships across the world as part of our global Britain agenda. We have consulted on potential FTAs with the USA, Australia, New Zealand and accession to the CPTPP. Fulfilling a 2017 manifesto commitment my Department appointed Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioners (HMTCs) based in 9 overseas regions which between them cover all anglosphere countries. Each HMTC is responsible for delivering a Regional Trade Plan which includes specific reference to growing UK exports to those regions and to opening markets globally.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Sleeping Rough: Veterans

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to implement a data collection exercise system of similar quality to the Greater London Authority’s Combined Homelessness and Information Network throughout England to allow accurate data capture on the number of rough sleeping veterans; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Our veterans play a vital role in keeping our country safe and we are committed to ensuring that they are provided with all the support they need to successfully adjust back into civilian life.In March we allocated an additional £1 million of bespoke funding to support ex-members of the armed forces who are or are at risk of becoming homeless. The funding has been allocated between the Combined Authorities and the Greater London Authority, and will be used to develop new services and support them in engaging with existing service provision.As recommended by the UKSA, we have included CHAIN (Combined Homelessness and Information Network) statistics within the Rough Sleeping Statistics release. Overall, 7 per cent of people seen sleeping rough by outreach workers across London during 2017/18 had served in the armed forces at some point in their lives. 3 per cent of these were UK nationals - around 135 people. Although CHAIN offers more information on the flows and characteristics of people rough sleeping, data quality is influenced by the number of outreach workers active on any one night. Therefore a local authority which does not have a commissioned outreach team may appear to have fewer rough sleepers than an adjacent borough which does have an active outreach service.MHCLG is actively encouraging local authorities with significant numbers of rough sleepers to improve their year-round data. We are working collaboratively with local authorities to develop improved homelessness data and outcomes that can measure progress in reducing rough sleeping and homelessness.In April 2018, we introduced a new data capture tool called H-CLIC. H-CLIC captures information on all those who engage with local authority homelessness services and will collect information on the support needs of a household, including support need resulting from being in the armed forces.We are also establishing local data pilots which will seek to improve the evidence on rough sleeping in some areas. These data pilots will help to provide a richer picture on the characteristics of rough sleepers in some areas.The Government is committed to reducing homelessness and rough sleeping. No one should ever have to sleep rough. That is why last summer we published the cross-government Rough Sleeping Strategy. This sets out an ambitious £100 million package to help people who sleep rough now, but also puts in place the structures that will end rough sleeping once and for all.We have committed over £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the spending review period. In its first year, our Rough Sleeping Initiative provided over 1,750 new bed spaces and 500 staff. This year we have expanded the RSI with investment of £46 million for 246 areas – providing funding for an estimated 2,600 bed spaces and 750 staff.

Flexible Working

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to use planning policy to support the provision of co-working spaces outside London.

Kit Malthouse: A key economic objective of the planning system is to ensure that sufficient land of the right types is available in the right places to support growth and innovation. The revised National Planning Policy Framework, published in July last year, makes it clear that planning policies should allow for new and flexible working practices and be flexible enough to accommodate needs not anticipated in the plan.

Non-domestic Rates

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many local authorities in England awarded a local business rates discount in (a) 2017-18 and (b) 2018-19; which local authorities made those awards; and what the level was of each discount.

Rishi Sunak: Data on the number of authorities and which authorities awarded a local business rates discount under Section 47 of the Local Government Act 1988 are collected from local authorities as a snapshot each year.Data as at 31 December 2017 can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/684809/1819_NNDR1_Supplementary_table_web.xlsx  Data as at 31 December 2018 can be found at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/786864/NNDR1_2019-20_Supplementary_table.xlsx  The Department does not collect data on the level of each discount awarded.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether the UK is able to leave the EU without a deal before 31 October 2019.

James Cleverly: The earliest that the UK can leave without a deal is 31 October 2019. Our priority remains delivering the deal to ensure a smooth and orderly exit before this date. While we do not want to leave with no deal and Parliament has also voted against this outcome three times, it remains the legal default at the end of the extension period in the event a Withdrawal Agreement cannot be agreed. As a responsible government we’ve been preparing to minimise any disruption in the event of no deal for over two years and will continue to prepare for all Brexit scenarios.

Free Movement of People: Musicians

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture Media and Sport on the effect of freedom of movement on the (a) livelihoods of UK musicians and (b) UK (i) creative sector and (ii) overall economy.

Mr Robin Walker: The Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on preparations for the UK’s departure from the European Union.The Government recognises the importance of mobility for the UK’s creative sector and wider economy. The creative industries contributed £101.5bn to the UK economy in 2017. That is why, in our White Paper on the UK’s future relationship with the EU, we said that whilst free movement of people will end, we want to agree reciprocal mobility arrangements with the EU that support businesses to provide services and move their talented people, and discuss how to facilitate the temporary mobility of self-employed professionals and employees providing services. The Immigration White Paper sets out the foundation for a single immigration system that will support the UK’s dynamic economy.Our proposals for mobility arrangements with the EU are reflected in the Political Declaration on the future relationship, which contains a specific reference to the importance of mobility and temporary movement of objects and equipment in enabling cooperation in the cultural sector. The details will be discussed in the next phase of negotiations.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Giles Watling: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on support for farmers after the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: The Secretary of State continues to have regular conversations with ministerial colleagues across Government on all aspects of exiting the EU.To provide certainty to farmers and landowners, the Government has pledged to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament. This commitment applies to the whole UK.The Agriculture Bill will allow us to break from the Common Agricultural Policy and help our farming sector become more profitable whilst sustaining our precious natural environment.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timeframe is for the bringing forward the transitional protection payments under schedule 2 of the Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019.

Alok Sharma: Following the High Court Judgment on 3 May, in relation to Universal Credit and these regulations, we are considering our response.

Social Security Benefits: Married People

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure continuity of receipt of benefits when the claimant gets married or experiences another change in circumstances.

Alok Sharma: DWP administer a wide range of benefits, all of which have different processes in place to deal with the vast range of potential changes to a claimant’s circumstances. How the change affects a claimant’s payments depends on the type of change, which benefit they are receiving, the claim’s status before the change occurs and whether the change was self-reported by the claimant or by a third party. In all cases the Department works with the claimant to ensure payment continuity wherever possible. There are processes in place to ensure that when a benefit recipient reports a change in circumstances, they continue to receive the correct award of that benefit, or are informed of what appropriate action they should take where the change effects continued entitlement.

Registration of Births, Deaths, Marriages and Civil Partnerships

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to extend the Tell Us Once service to the 10 local authorities where it is not currently available.

Alok Sharma: The Department is working closely with the 10 councils who do not offer the ‘Tell Us Once’ service to support and encourage its introduction. We continue to promote the advantages the service offers to people when notifying deaths, eliminating the need to contact several different government departments at what can be a very distressing time.

Universal Credit: Domestic Abuse

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2019 to Question 212664 on Universal Credit: Domestic Violence, what recent discussions her Department has had with the Scottish Government on the implementation of separate universal credit payments by default; and if she will make a statement.

Will Quince: When an individual suffering from domestic abuse requests a split payment, we will make split payments available to them. Whilst DWP is not intending to introduce split payments by default, as a department we respond positively to requests for split payments, and can take other actions to support those experiencing abuse, such as making a managed payment of rent direct to landlords. We also ensure that claimants who disclose domestic abuse are signposted to specialist organisations for support. All work coaches undergo mandatory training regarding how to support vulnerable claimants, including recognising the signs of domestic abuse. We will continue to work closely with the Scottish Government to establish the practicalities of delivering split payments in Scotland.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 May 2019 on Labour Market Policy Update, HCWS1545, whether people currently serving a sanction for a period of over 26 weeks will have that sanction rescinded.

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 May 2019 on Labour Market Policy Update, HCWS1545, when the ending of benefit sanctions of over six months will come into force.

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 May 2019 on Labour Market Policy Update, HCWS1545, whether claimants previously sanctioned for periods over six months will be entitled to recompense.

Alok Sharma: We are planning to reduce the duration of the third escalation of a high-level sanction (currently three years) to six months. We aim for this change to come into force by the end of the year. For those who have completed a three-year sanction in the past, they will not be entitled to recompense because their sanction was made in accordance with the law that was in place at the time.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Birds: Pest Control

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will establish an independent inquiry on the reasons his Department and Natural England decided on the proposal to revoke General Licences 04/05/06.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The decision to revoke the licences was made by Natural England (NE) as the licensing authority, not the government. We have not yet decided on a review of the recent situation.

Furosemide

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of banning the medication Furosemide from being used by trainers in equestrian training sessions.

David Rutley: Furosemide is an active ingredient authorised for use in veterinary medicines for dogs, cats and horses. Products containing furosemide are diuretic and are used to treat a build-up of fluid within the body, for example as a result of congestive heart failure. Medicines containing furosemide must be prescribed by a veterinary surgeon before they can be administered to an animal. The Government does not seek to interfere with the clinical judgement of a veterinary surgeon in determining the best available treatment to an animal under his or her care. There are no regulatory concerns that would necessitate a ban on the use of furosemide on the grounds of safety, quality or efficacy. Any ban on the use of a product in an equestrian sporting discipline is the responsibility of the relevant sport’s governing body.

Air Pollution

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department takes to protect vulnerable people, including older people, children and people with health conditions from pollution episodes.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: During episodes of elevated air pollution, Defra works closely with Public Health England and a network of health charities to ensure that key health messages are communicated to those who are vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, in addition to communicating through our normal digital channels. Defra’s Daily Air Quality Index (https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/air-pollution/daqi) assists in understanding air pollution levels and suggests recommended actions and health advice. Such advice applies to anyone experiencing symptoms.

Air Pollution

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what monitoring of air quality takes place in each local authority area in England; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to review and assess local ambient air quality, and are responsible for mitigation of air pollution where people are likely to be exposed. Defra provides guidance and support to local authorities on monitoring; positioning of monitors is expected to be in line with national and local priorities. In addition, Defra’s national network of air quality monitors currently comprises 272 sites across the UK and is managed by the Environment Agency. Sites are organised into networks that gather information on a wide range of pollutants in towns and cities as well as in rural areas. Some monitoring sites are focused on measuring specific sources, e.g. road traffic or industry whilst others are focused on background concentrations. Monitoring data is made available on our UK-AIR website. Data from the Automatic Urban and Rural Network is reported in near-real-time and is updated every hour. The website is: https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/.

Air Pollution

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) adults and (b) children who were exposed to high levels of air pollution between 4 and 26 April 2019.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Between 4 and 26 April 2019, there were two separate pollution episodes, which were due to a mixture of pollutants (including PM10, PM2.5 and ozone) and therefore it is not possible to easily estimate the number of adults and children who were exposed to high levels of air pollution.

Air Pollution

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,  what assessment he has made of the wind speed required to disperse (a) PM 0.1 and (b) PM 1 particles from the place where they are emitted.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In 2018 the Government commissioned the Air Quality Expert Group to write a detailed report on ultrafine particles, which include PM 0.1 and PM 1.0. This report describes extensive research assessing the factors that affect the formation and dispersion of PM0.1 and PM1.0, including wind speed. This report is available at https://uk-ir.defra.gov.uk/library/reports.php?report_id=968

Air Pollution

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what channels of communication his Department uses to alert the general public to a pollution episode.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: During air pollution episodes, Defra works closely with Public Health England and a network of health charities to ensure that key health messages are communicated to those who are vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, in addition to communicating through our normal digital channels. We recommend people visit http://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/ for the latest forecasts and health advice or check our Twitter feed @DefraUKAir.

Fisheries: Quotas

George Eustice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the reference to article 43(3) of the TFEU and the relative stability keys referred to in Article 130 of the Withdrawal Agreement include the interpretive recitals 36 and 37 concerning Hague Preference which are contained within EU regulation 1380/2013.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Article 130 of the Withdrawal Agreement provides for the relative stability keys for the allocation of fishing opportunities to be maintained during the implementation period. This provision is intended to ensure that the UK’s share of quota cannot be reduced and that the UK will continue to be able to invoke Hague Preference during the implementation period. The recitals to the basic Common Fisheries Policy Regulation (Regulation 1380/2013) make clear that relative stability should take account of the Hague Resolution and therefore this would be included in the reference to ‘relative stability keys’ in Article 130.

Rural Areas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants are (a) fully and (b) partially employed in (i) rural policy development and (ii) checking rural proofing of other departments and public bodies.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The work of most staff in Defra and its arms’ length bodies touches on rural areas, whether it is on agriculture, fisheries, natural environment or wildlife. There are currently 25 posts in Defra’s Rural Policy Team. All are involved in rural proofing, whether it is developing Defra’s approach, building the evidence base, engaging with stakeholders to identify concerns or working with other departments on specific issues. In addition, there are 29 posts in the team in Defra managing the Rural Development Programme for England.

Agriculture: Apprentices

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support apprenticeship schemes in the agri-food sector.

Mr Robert Goodwill: New employer designed apprenticeship standards are at the centre of the Government’s drive to ensure all apprenticeships are of the highest quality. There are now 20 new high quality standards available in the agriculture, environmental and animal care sector, plus a further 15 in development. Available standards include crop technician and land based service engineer. A full list of standards is published on the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education’s website:https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/ . The Department for Education (DfE) is responsible for apprenticeships policy in England. Defra works closely with DfE on how the apprenticeship system works for the agri-food sector. Defra also seeks to act as a bridge between industry and Government to support the sector in making the most of the Government’s apprenticeships reforms. The key mechanism for this activity is the Food and Drink Sector Council, which has identified skills as a key priority. Options to support and improve engagement with agri-food apprenticeships, as well as wider skills related issues, are being developed as part of the work of the Workforce and Skills Group of the Council.

Seafood: Northern Ireland

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland executive on the potential effect on the Northern Irish seafood industry of the UK leaving the EU.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Ministers meet monthly with their devolved administration counterparts at the Inter Ministerial Group for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Discussions include progress in our negotiations with the EU, domestic preparations ahead of our departure from the EU and how the four administrations can work together constructively. The most recent meeting was on 29 April in Cardiff. The Permanent Secretary at the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs attended the meeting in the current absence of a Northern Ireland Executive.

Moorland: Conservation

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the recent wildfires, what discussions he has had with representatives of conservation groups on the protection and enhancement of moorlands throughout the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra’s Wildfire Review will ensure our future land management policies protect our moorland and minimise the risks from wildfire. The review has encompassed discussions by Defra officials with stakeholders, both through a workshop held in February, and through continuing discussions with key stakeholders including the Moorland Association and the RSPB. Restoring peatlands so they are wet, and contain less combustible woody vegetation, is a key component in protecting our moorlands from the risk of wildfire. On 30 April I addressed a reception on ‘Managing the uplands for public benefit’, hosted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Attendees included representatives from the RSPB, Moors for the Future, and Ulster and Yorkshire Wildlife Trusts. Defra will be publishing the England Peatland Strategy which sets out our approach to long term peatland restoration and protection.

Pesticides

Gillian Keegan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to review his Department's policy on pesticides.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government intends to commence an in-depth review of pesticides policy later this year and will work closely with all interested parties as we develop our policy thinking.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how long farmers will continue to receive subsidy from the public purse in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We have pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament, expected in 2022. This includes all funding provided for farm support under both Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 of the current Common Agricultural Policy. This commitment applies to the whole of the UK, in both a negotiated and a no-deal scenario.Our Agriculture Bill includes a seven year transition period from 2021 to 2027, during which Direct Payments will be phased out gradually. This will give time for farmers to adapt and prepare for the new environmental land management system, which will allow farmers to decide how best they can deliver environmental benefits from their business and their land.

Fuel Poverty

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will commission an assessment of the effect of proposals in his Department's consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood on fuel poverty in England;  and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In this consultation, we asked for views on the most effective ways of avoiding any adverse impact on vulnerable groups or those who are reliant on solid fuel whilst supporting the Government’s objectives under the Clean Growth Strategy to phase out high carbon fossil fuel heating during the 2020s. We are considering views and suggestions as part of our analysis of the consultation responses and discussions with stakeholders. This analysis will be reflected in the updated Impact Assessment accompanying our formal response to this consultation. The Government intends to publish these documents later in the year.

Coal: Heating

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions staff in his Department have had with their counterparts in the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment in the Irish Government on the effect of that Government's proposal on the burning of house coal in Ireland; and if he will make a statement

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra officials have met with their counterparts in the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment in the Irish Government to discuss the house coal proposals outlined in the recent domestic burning consultation. Irish officials have shared data on the approach taken in Ireland as well as the health benefits achieved from their initial ban on the burning of smoky coal housecoal in Low Smoke Zones.

Solid Fuels: Heating

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the (a) level of and (b) type of toxins released as a result of the domestic burning of (i) coal, (ii) wet wood and (iii) dried wood as part of his Department's consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood in England; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government will take into account all factors that need to be considered in regulating the sale of the most polluting fuels. This includes the types of emissions from different fuels, the air quality benefits, and the impacts on business and households of switching to cleaner fuels. Our assessments of emissions of pollutants from domestic combustion sources use a range of data but are based on established international reporting. The range of fuels and appliances used in the UK is large and emissions from each combination vary greatly depending on how the appliance is operated. Emission factors for wood can also vary due to the differences in moisture content and fuel density. In compiling our National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory we use a combination of guidebook emissions factors for different combinations of fuels and appliances, alongside UK specific data on regional fuel and appliance usage.

Air Pollution

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on air quality of the the number of journeys taken by bicycle.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra has not carried out a specific assessment of the effect on air quality of the number of journeys taken by bicycle. However, the Government is committed to increasing cycling and walking and making our roads safer for vulnerable users, including cyclists and pedestrians. The benefits of cycling and walking are considerable. For people, it means cheaper travel and better health. For businesses, it means increased productivity and increased footfall in shops. And for society as a whole it means less congestion, better air quality, and vibrant, attractive places and communities. The Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, published in 2017, sets out the Government’s plans for cycling and walking, with an ambition up to 2040 for “making cycling and walking the natural choices for short journeys or as part of a longer journey”. The strategy also identifies £2 billion of financial resources which may be invested in cycling and walking during the Spending Review 2015 settlement period 2016/17-2020/21.

Birds: Pest Control

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on which occasions he requested legal advice on the revocation of General Licences 04/05/06 in the last year; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In accordance with the usual convention, legal advice is not disclosed outside of the Government. This ensures that the Government can obtain full and frank legal advice in confidence.

Home Office

İyad el-Baghdadi

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to cooperate with the Governments of (a) Norway and (b) five eyes partner countries to offer protection to Iyad el-Baghdadi from reported threats linked to the Saudi Arabian Government.

Mr Ben Wallace: It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on the security arrangements for individuals or certain groups. To do so could compromise the integrity of those arrangements and affect the security of the individuals concerned.

Deportation: Sri Lanka

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been deported to Sri Lanka from the UK in (a) 2015, (b) 2016, (c) 2017, (d) 2018 and  (e) to date in 2019.

Caroline Nokes: The number of enforced returns from the UK by year and country of nationality is published in table rt_02 (returns data tables, volume 1) in ‘Immigration Statistics, year ending December 2018’, available from the GOV.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/781113/returns1-dec-2018-tables.odsThe term 'deportations' refers to a legally-defined subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available and therefore the published statistics refer to all enforced returns.Information for January to March 2019 will be published on 24th May 2019.

Asylum: Applications

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason the decision was made to abandon the six-month target for processing straightforward asylum claims.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the mental health of asylum seekers of the decision to abolish the six-month target for processing straightforward asylum claims.

Caroline Nokes: In line with our ambition to promote a greater understanding and transparency of the asylum system and to develop service standards that are meaningful and command confidence, plans are underway for UKVI to implement new service standards for asylum case working. This change means UKVI will be moving away from the six-month service standard for straightforward cases which was introduced in 2014.It had become clear that the current service standard no longer best served those that used our services and a number of stakeholders had been concerned that not all cases were captured by it.For these reasons, it has been agreed to change how Asylum Operations prioritise their workload. This means, in the short term, Asylum Operations will reprioritise cases by focusing on claims with acute vulnerability and those in receipt of the greatest level of support, including Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC). Additionally, cases where an individual has already received a decision, but a reconsideration is required, will also be prioritised. The implications of the change on applicants have been considered and appropriate mitigations put in place, with the most vulnerable groups being prioritised as appropriate.The intention is for this approach to bring balance back to the asylum system while steps are taken to increase the capacity of the asylum decision making system and focus on process improvements to deliver better quality decisions more efficiently.To come to a longer-term arrangement for service standards that meet the needs of those seeking asylum and the country, UKVI have engaged with key partners in the Strategic Engagement Group (SEG) and other NGOs to redesign the way in which claims are prioritised. This engagement started on 4 December 2018 and over 100 organisations were invited to service standards workshops, which included members of SEG and National Asylum Stakeholder Forum (NASF) sub groups. 41 organisations out of the 100 attended workshops nationally.We aim to ensure that we design our new service standards to deliver a world leading immigration service for those seeking asylum in the UK.

Police: Pensions

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment has been made of the potential effect of planned increases to the employer contributions of the police pension scheme on police officer recruitment.

Mr Nick Hurd: The additional cost to policing in 2019-20 of employer contributions to police pensions is estimated to be £330 million.The 2019-20 police funding settlement provides additional funding of over £970 million, including general Government grant funding, pensions grant, council tax precept and investment in national priorities. This substantial increase in funding will enable forces to meet their genuine financial pressures as well as to invest in key capabilities. Police and Crime Commissioners have already set out plans to hire an additional 2,900 officers and nearly 600 police staff and PCSOs.

Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much was allocated to (a) individual police forces in England and Wales, (b) individual government departments, (c) individual local authorities and (d) other bodies through the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme in each year since 2010.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much money has accrued to the public purse in confiscation orders; and how much of that money has been allocated in compensation to victims of crime in each year since 2010.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has plans to change the redistribution mechanism in the Asset Recovery Incentivisation scheme so that (a) local authorities and (b) police forces receive higher payments for successful investigations.

Mr Ben Wallace: Data on asset recovery is published annually, the latest published figures are available on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/asset-recovery-statistics.The Home Office runs the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme (ARIS). With over 250 agencies participating in the Scheme, it would take disproportionate time and resource to provide a detailed breakdown of these individual payments.The amounts recovered in respect of confiscation orders, together with amounts paid from this amount in compensation is provided in the attached table. This information was taken from the live database, JARD (Joint Asset Recovery Database) on 9 May 2019.There are no immediate plans for changing the distribution allocations in the ARIS, but the Government keeps it under review. The upcoming Asset Recovery Action Plan will make wider recommendations to improve the use and effectiveness of powers and practice in this area.

Stop and Search: Lewisham

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the Metropolitan Police Service used stop and search in the London borough of Lewisham in 2018.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of stop and searches, conducted by each police force in England and Wales, on an annual basis. Data are collected at Police Force Area level only and information at borough level is not held centrally.Data are published in the ‘Police Powers and Procedures, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin, the latest of which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-powers-and-procedures-england-and-wales-year-ending-31-march-2018

Stop and Search: Costs

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of conducting stop and search to (a) the Metropolitan Police Service and (b) police forces nationally, in each of the last three years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not hold this information. The efficiency and cost of stop and search encounters to individual forces will depend on a number of factors, and the police have our full support in the fair and intelligence-led use of this important tool to combat violence.

Immigrants: Lewisham

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people living in (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency and (b) the London borough of Lewisham who have no recourse to public funds.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the number of children living in (a) Lewisham Deptford constituency and (b) the London Borough of Lewisham who are looked after by parents with no recourse to public funds.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office does not hold the data requested and information on the UK’s resident population is a matter for the independent Office for National Statistics. The no recourse to public funds (NRPF) condition is applied to the leave of most migrants in the UK as a legitimate means of maintaining and protecting our economic resources.In those cases where leave has been, or is being, granted for family or private life reasons the NRPF condition can be lifted on application to the Home Office if that is necessary to meet the welfare needs of children. In addition, immigration legislation specifically provides for children to remain eligible for support from a local authority under section 17 of the Children Act 1989, and an assessment of welfare needs will be part of providing that support.

Homicide: Criminal Investigation

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the average cost to the police of conducting a homicide investigation.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office has estimated the average cost to the police for dealing with and investigating a homicide was £11,960 in 2015/16.

Asylum: Housing

Holly Lynch: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he plans to allocate additional resources to the Migrant Help phone line to respond to asylum accommodation calls from September 2019.

Caroline Nokes: Migrant Help recently won the contract to deliver the Advice, Issue Reporting and Eligibility (AIRE) contract. AIRE will provide advice and guidance on the asylum process, their rights and signposting different services. It will also provide asylum seekers with a single point of contact, independent from the accommodation providers and the Home Office, to report issues.The resourcing of the Migrant Help phone lines are included as part of the AIRE contract and we are working with them to ensure a smooth transition of service.I have attached the AIRE statement of requirements which provides further information about the AIRE contract.



AIRE Statement of Requirements
(Word Document, 312.42 KB)

European Arrest Warrants: Northern Ireland

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many warrants have been issued under the European Arrest Warrant for prosecution in Northern Ireland by member state of origin in each of the last five years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not hold the information requested.However, statistics on the European Arrest Warrant are published by the National Crime Agency each year. These figures include a breakdown of the numbers of requests made by the UK.These figures are published at: http://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/publications/european-arrest-warrant-statistics

Asylum: Applications

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of new asylum applications breached the six month resolution target threshold in 2018.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many new asylum applications breached the six month resolution target threshold in 2018.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications submitted in 2017 breached the six month resolution target threshold during 2018.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications have remained open for over a year as at 1 December 2018.

Caroline Nokes: Information regarding the number of asylum applications that breached the six month resolution target threshold in 2017/2018 is published as part of the Government’s Transparency agenda, the latest release of which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-transparency-data-february-2019The Home Office does not publish data on the number of asylum applications that have remained open for over a year as at 1 December 2018.However as at 31st December 2018, there were 12,213 asylum applications pending an initial decision for more than 6 months. This can be found at Immigration Statistics, table as_01.

Organised Crime: Proceeds of Crime

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the income that organised crime groups have made from criminal activity by (a) supplying and/or selling illegal drugs and (b) trafficking people in each of the last five years.

Mr Ben Wallace: No estimate has been made on this specific issue by the Home Office.The scale and social & economic costs associated with a number of Serious & Organised Crimes including Drugs Supply and Human Trafficking are set out in the Understanding Organised Crime report (published November 2018).

Immigration: EU Nationals

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 February 2019 to HL13583, how much of the £170 million reserved for the development and delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme was allocated to (a) the digital application system, (b) the communications campaign to promote awareness of that scheme and (c) caseworkers to process applications to that scheme in the 2018-19 financial year.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 February 2019 to HL13583, how much of the £170 million reserved for the development and delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme was used on promoting that scheme in foreign language EU newspapers.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 February 2019 to HL13583, how much of the £170 million reserved for the development and delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme was allocated to promoting and advertising that scheme (a) on the radio, (b) on television, (c) online and (d) in print.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost to the public purse for the (a) development and (b) delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme in 2019-20 will be.

Caroline Nokes: For the 2018/19 financial year, HM Treasury provided EU Exit funding allocation of £395 million to Home Office. £170 million was been reserved for the development and delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme. Allocation for the requested areas are as follows (these figures are still being audited and may change by the time that they are published):Caseworkers and staff: £59mApplication system: £63mThe EU Settlement Scheme marketing campaign led by the Home Office did not include advertising in foreign newspapers. However, the Immigration Minister was interviewed by key diaspora media both in broadcast and print for the highest populated EU countries in the UK. The Home Office launched a £3.75m UK wide marketing campaign to encourage EU citizens to apply when the EU Settlement Scheme went live. The campaign ran on radio, catch up tv, online, print with the cost breakdown below. Advertising also ran on outdoor billboards.a. Radio and digital audio: £410,000b. Catch up tv: £1,000,000c. Online (digital and social): £410,000d. Print: £180,000Data for 2019/20 financial year expenditure is unavailable as the new financial year has just begun.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to meet the access needs of disabled people who wish to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office has put in place a comprehensive vulnerability strategy to ensure that the EU Settlement Scheme is accessible for allWe are working in partnership with vulnerable group representatives, local authorities and other experts to understand user needs and issues and to ensure the right support arrangements are in place for applicants, including those with disabilities.The Home Office has introduced a range of support including up to £9 million grant funding for voluntary and community organisations, to ensure those that require the most support to apply to the scheme can access itThe Home Office has developed a community toolkit which includes com-munications materials and specific guidance on the EU Settlement Scheme for local authorities to download to help support individuals.The Settlement Resolution Centre provides help and information to individuals completing their EU Settlement Scheme application and can also be contacted via e-mail. An Assisted Digital service is available for those who do not have the skills, access or confidence to complete the online form.

Early Intervention Youth Fund: Greater London

Sir Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which projects by London Borough have received funding for the Early Intervention Youth Fund as set out in in the Serious Violence Strategy announcement on 9 April 2018.

Victoria Atkins: We have awarded over £4.1m from the £22m Early Intervention Youth Fund to fund ten projects in London. Details on the projects are at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-intervention-youth-fund-successful-bids.

Knife Crime Community Fund: Greater London

Sir Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which projects by London Borough have received funding from the anti-knife crime Communication Fund as  set out in in the Serious Violence Strategy announcement on 9 April 2018.

Victoria Atkins: Lists of all London-based projects that have received funding from the anti-knife crime Community Fund in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 financial years may be found in the attached tables.https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707629/successful_bids_knife_crime.csv/previewhttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/734836/anti_knife_fund.csv/preview



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Home Office: Former Ministers

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much his Department has paid to hon. Members under section 4 of the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 since 13 July 2016.

Victoria Atkins: Any such payments are published in the department’s audited annual accounts, and these accounts can be found on gov.uk.

Missing Persons

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Missing Persons Register will be published.

Victoria Atkins: We are currently working towards the National Register of Missing Persons (NRMP) to be in use operationally in 2020/2021.The NRMP will be delivered through the Home Office National Law Enforcement Data Programme (NLEDP) and will enable us to have a snapshot of live missing incidents across police forces in England and Wales. This will assist officers when they encounter a missing person, particularly if that missing person is located outside their home force area.

Asylum

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to promote Refugee Week 2019; and if he will take steps to ensure his Department promotes the value of refugees and asylum seekers to the UK.

Caroline Nokes: The UK government is committed to humanitarian efforts to support refugees at home and abroad.The UK has a proud history of providing protection to those who need it – and this Government is committed to ensuring refugees can take positive steps towards integration as they rebuild their lives in the UK.We recognise Refugee Week as an opportunity to celebrate the valuable contributions refugees make to UK society.

British Nationality: Assessments

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to include adult and child safeguarding in the Life in the UK Test.

Caroline Nokes: There is currently a “fundamental principles” section in the handbook which covers domestic violence, female genital mutilation and forced marriage.However, the Home Secretary has announced a review of the handbook and test, and we will be revising it and the test to place greater emphasis on British values. In doing so, it is important that we focus on both the rights and responsibilities of citizens and on the importance of being active citizens. We are currently considering how this will be taken forward.

Drugs: Misuse

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to reduce demand for class A drugs.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is taking a range of action to reduce the demand for illegal drugs, including Class A drugs.As set out in the 2017 Drug Strategy, our prevention approach combines uni-versal action for all young people with targeted action for groups at particular risk, including young people with a range of vulnerabilities, offenders and homeless people.Our universal approach focuses on supporting evidence-based programmes which have a positive impact on young people, giving them the confidence and resilience to resist drug misuse. This includes investing in the Alcohol and Drugs Education and Prevention Information Service which provides practical advice and tools to schools and educators, and developing the 'Rise Above' digital hub. The Government is also introducing compulsory health education in all schools from September 2020, which will include a focus on the risks associated with drug misuse.Alongside this, on 8 February the Home Secretary announced the appoint-ment of Professor Dame Carol Black to lead a major independent review of drugs, which will look at a wide range of issues including the drivers behind recent trends in Class A drug misuse.

Asylum

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken is for a decision on an application for asylum.

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken is for Home Office decisions on applications for asylum in the Yorkshire and Humber region.

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to reduce the time taken for asylum decisions to be made.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office does not publish data on the average time taken to make a decision on an asylum application. In addition, we cannot provide data on the average time taken to receive a decision in particular region such as Yorkshire and Humber, such data can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.However, the Home Office does publish data on the number of pending applications that have been awaiting an initial decision for more or less than 6 months. This data can be found at Volume 1, as_01 of the Immigration Statistics December 2018: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-december-2018/list-of-tables#asylumIn line with our ambition to promote a greater understanding and transparency of the asylum system and to develop service standards that are meaningful and command confidence, plans are underway for UKVI to implement new service standards for asylum case working. This change means UKVI will be moving away from the six-month service standard for straightforward cases which was introduced in 2014.It had become clear that the current service standard no longer best served those that used our services and a number of stakeholders had been concerned that not all cases were captured by it.For these reasons, it has been agreed to change how Asylum Operations proritise their workload. This means, in the short term, Asylum Operations will reprioritise cases by focusing on claims with acute vulnerability and those in receipt of the greatest level of support, including Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC). Additionally, cases where an individual has already received a decision, but a reconsideration is required, will also be prioritised. The implications of the change on applicants have been considered and appropriate mitigations put in place, with the most vulnerable groups being prioritised as appropriate.The intention is for this approach to bring balance back to the asylum system while steps are taken to increase the capacity of the asylum decision making system and focus on process improvements to deliver better quality decisions more efficiently.To come to a longer-term arrangement for service standards that meet the needs of those seeking asylum and the country, UKVI have engaged with key partners in the Strategic Engagement Group (SEG) and other NGOs to redesign the way in which claims are prioritised. This engagement started on 4 December 2018 and over 100 organisations were invited to service standards workshops, which included members of SEG and National Asylum Stakeholder Forum (NASF) sub groups. 41 organisations out of the 100 attended workshops nationally.We aim to ensure that we design our new service standards to deliver a world leading immigration service for those seeking asylum in the UK.

Asylum

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of asylum claims are decided within the Home Office’s service standard that 98 per cent of straightforward claims will be decided within 6 months.

Caroline Nokes: In line with our ambition to promote a greater understanding and transparency of the asylum system and to develop service standards that are meaningful and command confidence, plans are underway for UKVI to implement new service standards for asylum case working. This change means UKVI have moved away from the six-month service standard for straightforward cases which was introduced in 2014.It had become clear that the service standard no longer best served those that used our services and a number of stakeholders had been concerned that not all cases were captured by it.The intention is for this approach to bring balance back to the asylum system while steps are taken to increase the capacity of the asylum decision making system and focus on process improvements to deliver better quality decisions more efficiently.Data on the proportion of asylum claims that are decided within the Home Office’s previous service standard, which was to decide 98 per cent of straight-forward claims within 6 months can be found at Asy_10: Percentage of Asy-lum applications processed within 6 months, Asylum Transparency data February 2019: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-transparency-data-february-2019

Asylum: Employment

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to allow individuals who have not received a decision on their asylum claim after six months the right to work.

Caroline Nokes: Asylum seekers can work in the UK if their claim has been outstanding for 12 months, through no fault of their own. Those allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation List, which is published by the Home Office and based on expert advice from the Migration Advisory Committee.During the Meaningful Vote debate on 5 December, the Home Secretary stated that although there are no current plans to change the current policy, it is an area he wished to review, and work on this is ongoing.In making any policy changes, it is important to distinguish between those who need protection and economic migrants, who can apply for a work visa under the Immigration Rules. Our wider policy could be undermined if migrants could bypass work visa routes by lodging unfounded asylum claims.

Deportation: Homosexuality

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the 13th edition of the ILGA State Sponsored Homophobia Report, how many people were deported to each of the 71 countries where homosexuality is illegal in (a) 2016, (b) 2017 and (c) 2018.

Caroline Nokes: The number of enforced returns from the UK by year and country of destination is published in table rt_05 (returns data tables, volume 5) in ‘Immigration Statistics, year ending December 2018’, available from the GOV.uk website at:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/781118/returns5-dec-2018-tables.odsDeportations are a subset of enforced returns. They may occur either following a criminal conviction, or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available. The published statistics refer to enforced returns, which include deportations, as well as cases where a person has breached UK immigration laws, and those removed under other administrative and illegal entry powers who have declined to leave voluntarily. Most illegal immigrants are removed from the UK under administrative or illegal entry powers and not deported.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what standards his Department used in the digital verification of people applying to the EU Settlement Scheme.

Caroline Nokes: EU citizens make a huge contribution to our economy and society, and we want them to stay. The EU Settlement Scheme enables them to do so.The ‘EU Exit: Identity Document Check’ app is an optional aspect of the service which allows applicants to prove their identity remotely.The app performs a series of digital security checks on the chip contained within the applicant’s identity document that meets the international standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). These checks allow us to establish, to a high level of trust, the authenticity of the identity document and its contents. Where an individual cannot validate their identity document using the app to make an application to the EU Settlement Scheme, they can post their identity documents to the Home Office to be checked and returned quickly.The use of the ‘EU Exit: ID Document Check’ app is entirely optional, but it offers a secure and quick way of making an application to the EU Settlement Scheme.

Asylum: Namibia

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons his Department is unable to provide an essential interpreter for Namibian nationals undertaking a substantive asylum interview.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office recognises the ongoing high demand for Namibian interpreters across the department and has an ongoing recruitment campaign for all high demand languages, of which Namibian is a priority.We will continue to explore and act upon potential recruitment avenues both regionally and nationally. Alongside the ongoing recruitment campaign, we will continue to work with stakeholders in assessing demand and have in place contingencies to ensure the available national resource is utilised as effectively as possible.

Knives: Crime

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help ensure that there is no increase in knife crime in Newcastle.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is determined to do everything it can to tackle knife crime and break the deadly cycle of violence that devastates the lives of victims, families and communities. The latest statistics published by the Office for National Statistics on 25 April for the year ending December 2018 show an increase of 6 per cent in police recorded knife crime across England and Wales, including a 4 per cent increase in the Northumbria police area.We are taking action to address these increases on a number of fronts in support of our Serious Violence Strategy. This includes providing the police with the powers and resources they need to take effective action in all areas of the country. Through the Offensive Weapons Act we are tightening the law in relation to knives, including making it an offence to possess certain offensive weapons in private, and stopping knives being sent to residential addresses after they are bought online unless the seller has arrangements with a delivery company to verify age. We are also introducing new Knife Crime Prevention Orders, requested by the police to help them to tackle young people who are on the cusp of serious violence, to help them make more positive lifestyle choices. We also continue to support the police national weeks of action against knife crime under Operation Sceptre.The police funding settlement provides the police with the biggest increase in funding since 2010, and in addition we are providing the additional £100 million to tackle serious violence announced in the Spring Statement on 13 March, which includes £80m of new funding from the Treasury. The majority of the investment will go towards supporting the police forces most affected by the violence we are seeing, but the funding will also support Violence Reduction Units, bringing together a range of agencies, including health, education, social services and others, to develop a multi-agency approach to preventing serious violence. £63.4 million of this funding has already been allocated to 18 police forces most affected by serious violence to pay for surge operational activity, including increased patrols, and £1.6 million to help improve the quality of data on serious violence, particularly knife crime, to support planning and operations. Northumbria has been allocated £2.32m from this fund.We are also raising awareness among young people of the dangers of carrying a knife through our national media campaign - #knifefree – and supporting early intervention through the £22 million Early Intervention Youth Fund, which is already supporting 29 local projects, including £371,632 allocated to the Police and Crime Commissioner in Northumbria to target young people on the periphery of involvement with the criminal justice system, as a result of their escalating offending behaviour.We have also introduced the £200 million Youth Endowment Fund, which will be delivered over the next 10 years to support interventions with children and young people at risk of involvement in crime and violence, focusing on those most at risk. The charity Impetus, working in partnership with the Early Intervention Foundation and Social Investment Business, is now operating the FundA full list of the forces and the funding they have received from the serious violence fund is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/police-granted-funding-boost-for-action-on-serious-violence.

Cabinet Office

Unemployment: Epilepsy

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the unemployment rate for people with epilepsy.

Kevin Foster: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
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Cabinet Office: Former Ministers

Justin Madders: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much his Department has paid to hon. Members under section 4 of the Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 since 13 July 2016.

Mr David Lidington: Any such payments are published in the department’s audited annual accounts, and these accounts can be found on gov.uk.

Cabinet Office: Retirement

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what support his Department provides to staff in his Department (a) in their transition to retirement and (b) to (i) maintain and (ii) increase the physical and mental wellbeing staff planning for retirement.

Oliver Dowden: The Cabinet Office has a retirement policy on how employees should prepare forretirement. It also provides pensions awareness sessions, supported by a member helpcentre which is run by MyCSP, and plans to run financial education sessions in November2019The Cabinet Office wellbeing action plan enables support for all staff, including those nearretirement. A number of key initiatives which support people transitioning to retirementinclude: running leadership wellbeing training for all Senior Civil Servants, updating linemanager training to ensure wellbeing is included in all conversations, embedding wellbeinginto the Senior Civil Service leadership objective and including wellbeing in performancemanagement monthly conversation toolsThere are a number of support services available in Cabinet Office that provide support oradvice to all employees, and would be of benefit to those nearing retirement. Theseinclude the Cabinet Office alumni network, the Cabinet Office listening service and theemployee assistance programmeCivil Service Learning also offers learning opportunities for all Civil Servants planning forretirement, including a day-long workshop on this subject.

Employment

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent comparative assessment he has made of the job densities of (a) Newcastle Central, (b) the North East, (c) London and (d) the UK; and what period that assessment covers.

Kevin Foster: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 16.04 KB)

Treasury

Sanitary Protection: VAT

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has made to the Romanian Presidency on progressing its negotiations on abolishing VAT on sanitary products.

Mel Stride: To date, the Romanian Presidency has held one official level discussion on the European Commission’s legislative proposal on VAT Rates. As drafted, this proposal would give the UK the flexibility to apply a zero rate of VAT to women’s sanitary products. During this discussion, the UK delegation made clear that the Government strongly supports the flexibility that the draft legislation would offer. Member States and the Commission are well aware of the Government’s firm commitment to zero rate women’s sanitary products as soon as it is legal to do so.

Beer: Excise Duties

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the effect on (a) total revenue and (b) levels of beer consumption of the decision to freeze beer duty last year.

Robert Jenrick: HMRC publishes a tax information and impact note (TIIN) on gov.uk explaining the impact of the policy change, each time alcohol duty rates are amended. The most recent TIIN published at Autumn Budget 2018 can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/increase-in-alcohol-duty-rates/alcohol-duty-uprating. Statistics on alcohol sales and receipts are available from the UKTradeInfo website: https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/Pages/TaxAndDutybulletins.aspx

Pensioners: Stamp Duty Land Tax

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to exempt pensioners from Stamp Duty when they downsize their homes.

Mel Stride: Most owners wishing to downsize are likely to have equity in their current property, and are already exempt from Capital Gains Tax on any gain made on their main residence. For most of those looking to downsize, the SDLT due on the move-in property will be small, and in most cases, it will be lower than estate agent’s fees. The Government therefore has no current plans for a further relief for those looking to downsize. The Government’s priority is to support first time buyers, which is why the Autumn Budget 2017 announced the introduction of First-Time Buyers’ Relief. Since its introduction, 288,300 households have benefitted from First-Time Buyers’ Relief, saving around £2,360 on average.

Assistance Animals: Food

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons VAT will be charged on food for assistance and therapy dogs.

Mel Stride: The sale of food that is formulated and held out for sale exclusively for working dogs, which includes assistance and therapy dogs, is zero rated. The VAT rules in this area are long-standing and have not changed.

Doctors: Pensions

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State for Defence on the annual tapered allowance and its effect on the recruitment and retention of doctors in the NHS and armed forces.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government is committed to public service pensions which are fair to workers and fair to other taxpayers. The tapered annual allowance is focussed on the highest earning pension savers, to ensure that the benefit they receive is not disproportionate. The Government is aware of specific concerns raised by some high-earners impacted by annual allowance tax charges. All public sector pay and pensions policies are kept under constant review and discussed with relevant departments.

Treasury: Retirement

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support his Department provides to staff in his Department (a) in their transition to retirement and (b) to (i) maintain and (ii) increase the physical and mental wellbeing staff planning for retirement.

Robert Jenrick: In their transition to retirement staff are invited to attend a Civil Service pre-retirement course focusing on many topics including wellbeing, activities, pension and other finances. They also have access to an Employee Assistance Programme free of charge that can provide information and support relating to retirement including preparation, change, relationships, staying active, benefit entitlement and wills. They may also be able to take partial retirement in order to reduce their working hours and ease them into retirement. HM Treasury encourages staff throughout their careers to maintain good physical and mental wellbeing and work life balance. Much information, support and activities are available to them including: Mental health awareness training;Various Networks including a Mental Wellbeing Network and an Age Network that champions older workers;Occupational Health (providing information on healthy lifestyle and eating);On-site gym and activity classes;Sports and Social Club offering a wide variety of sport activities that can be accessed following retirement. HM Treasury also encourages volunteering that can continue into retirement, which can give those approaching retirement a sense of purpose going forward.

Musicians: EU Countries

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that musicians can transport instruments and equipment to EU27 countries after the UK leaves the EU.

Mel Stride: Delivering a deal negotiated with the EU remains the Government’s top priority. However, if the UK leaves the EU without a deal, the same customs rules will broadly apply to transporting instruments and equipment to the EU as apply to trade between the UK and non-EU countries. This will include the use of temporary admission and applications for Returned Goods Relief. Alternatively, ATA carnets are available for commercial goods, professional equipment or goods going to trade fair or exhibition in participating countries, which are moved on a temporary basis to a new customs territory (i.e. they will not be sold and will return to the country of origin). This includes musical instruments. In a no deal scenario, the process of using an ATA Carnet (or a temporary admission declaration) will become an acceptable option for moving goods temporarily between the UK and EU, as the UK will become a single customs territory. The process for obtaining and using a Carnet will remain as it is now.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Broadband: Fees and Charges

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has plans to enable BT to charge more for Openreach network broadband connections in rural areas than in urban areas in order to subsidise the cost of high-speed fibre broadband.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has plans to enable BT to levy upfront charges on consumers accessing Openreach network broadband connections in order to subsidise the cost of high-speed fibre broadband.

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent representations he has received from representatives of Ofcom on the funding of high-speed fibre broadband infrastructure in rural areas.

Margot James: We have no plans to introduce legislation which would allow BT/Openreach to charge rural consumers more than urban consumers to subsidise their full fibre broadband connections. The Government is already supporting rural broadband connectivity in a number of ways. Our £1.8 billion superfast broadband programme has achieved its target of 95% superfast coverage across the UK. In our Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review (FTIR), we set a target to go further and ensure that 15 million premises can connect to gigabit capable, full fibre broadband by 2025 with nationwide coverage by 2033. We are already investing to make that happen, stimulating the market through the £278 million Local Full Fibre Networks (LFFN) programme and the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme. The FTIR was clear that the Government would also support full fibre broadband in less commercial areas of the country, likely to be around 10% of UK premises, so that no areas are systematically left behind. To start this, the 2018 Budget announced £200 million for the Rural Gigabit Connectivity programme. Ministers meet regularly with Ofcom to discuss a range of issues. Ofcom is currently consulting on its initial proposals for promoting competition and investment in fibre networks across the country including in less commercial, rural areas of the UK.

Social Media: Freedom of Expression

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure free speech on social media platforms.

Margot James: The Government is committed to upholding free speech, and legislation is already in place to protect these fundamental rights. However, this freedom cannot be an excuse to cause harm or spread hatred. The Online Harms White Paper sets out the Government's proposals for making the UK the safest place to be online. The proposed independent regulator will have an obligation to protect users' rights online, particularly rights to privacy and freedom of expression. It will ensure that the new regulatory requirements do not lead to a disproportionately risk averse response from companies that unduly limits freedom of expression, including by limiting participation in public debate.

Disinformation

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what definition of fake news is used by his Department.

Margot James: Fake news' conflates a variety of types of false information. DCMS instead focuses on terms such as 'disinformation' and 'misinformation'. In our work we have defined disinformation as the deliberate creation and sharing of false and/or manipulated information that is intended to deceive and mislead audiences, either for the purposes of causing harm, or for political, personal or financial gain. 'Misinformation' refers to the inadvertent sharing of false information.

Service Industries: Flexible Working

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his Department has had with the hospitality sector on supporting working spaces within hotels and cafes.

Michael Ellis: We work with a wide range of stakeholders across the tourism and hospitality sector across a range of issues, however this has not been raised with us. The provision of working spaces, or co-working spaces, is a business decision which is up to individuals to implement.

Internet: Safety

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on online protections for children and young people of the Internet Engineering Task Force DNS over HTTPS (DOH) protocol; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: Whilst we look to support capabilities that seek to deliver security and privacy to the UK online, we are concerned about the potential unintended consequences. DCMS is working closely with industry, stakeholders and regulators to seek solutions to any potential issues with online protections, as part of our ongoing work to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online.

Internet: Security

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many internet browser providers have informed his Department that they will not be adopting the Internet Engineering Task Force DNS over HTTPS  (DOH) protocol.

Margot James: How DOH will be deployed is still a subject of discussion within the industry, both for browser providers and the wider internet industry. We are aware of the public statements made by some browser providers on deployment and we are seeking to understand definitively their rollout plans. DCMS is in discussions with browser providers, internet industry and other stakeholders and we are keen to see a resolution that is acceptable for all parties.

House of Commons Commission

Parliamentary Estate: Waste

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what recent estimate the Commission has made of the amount of food waste produced by the kitchens on the parliamentary estate.

Tom Brake: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Parliamentary Estate: Waste Management

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what steps the Commission is taking to reduce the amount of food waste produced by the kitchens on the parliamentary estate.

Tom Brake: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.